Headlines
Boat with Rs.6 bn narcotics, 8 Pakistanis seized off Gujarat coast
Mumbai/Ahmedabad, April 21
Indian defence
agencies have seized a boat with eight Pakistanis on board and carrying
narcotics worth around Rs.6 billion ($95 m), in the Arabian Sea off the
Gujarat coast on Monday, the government confirmed on Tuesday.
The
vessel, fitted with sophisticated communication systems, was
intercepted in international waters in a joint operation by the Indian
Navy (IN) and the Indian Coast Guard (ICG).
The eight Pakistani
nationals and the boat - the origin and destination of which were not
disclosed - are being taken to Porbandar port in Gujarat for further
investigations by law enforcement officials, Intelligence Bureau
personnel, Indian Navy and ICG.
"The initial investigations by
ICG Sangram have led to recovery of 232 packets of narcotics (suspected
to be heroin and worth up to Rs.600 crores in the international market).
Additionally, satellite communication phones and Global Positioning
Systems, being used to facilitate trans-shipment of the contraband to
another boat were also confiscated," the statement said.
Following
intelligence inputs, the operation to trace the suspicious vessel was
launched on April 18 in close coordination with the Indian Navy western
command, along with the ICG north-west regional headquarters.
Later,
multiple units of the Indian Navy, including INS Nirghat and INS
Kondul, and ICG Sangram joined the search, besides extensive aerial
searches by their Dorniers, IL-38 and P8I aircraft.
This is the
first major operation by the Indian agencies in the Gujarat region after
the January 1 incident this year when a suspected smuggling boat had
blown up, creating a major controversy between India and Pakistan.