Iran: The Indian Coast Guard intercepted a foreign boat in the Arabian Sea off Gujarat and seized 200 cartons of foreign-brand cigarettes worth around Rs 5 crore and arrested four Iranian nationals, the ICG said.
The operation was carried out off the Dwarka coast. The vessel, identified as Al Mukhtar, was carrying four Iranian crew members and was carrying 200 cartons containing around one lakh packets of foreign-brand cigarettes.
The international market value of the consignment is estimated at Rs 2.5 crore to Rs 5 crore, the ICG said on social media. It said the boat was being taken to Porbandar in Gujarat for further investigation by security agencies and joint interrogation of the crew.
The vessel, identified as Al Mukhtar, had four Iranian crew members. During the search, 200 boxes containing about one lakh foreign brand cigarette packets were found hidden in the hold, it said.
Earlier, the ICG and the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) had arrested two Iranian nationals with over 200 kg of suspected narcotics off the Gujarat coast in a joint operation.