Indian Coast Guard (ICG) in coordination with the Narcotics Control Board (NCB) and anti-terrorist squad of Gujarat on Sunday seized 86 kilograms of drugs worth over `600 crore from a Pakistan boat and apprehended 14 crew off Gujarat coast.
Giving details here, officials said in a breathtaking overnight operation, ICG undertook an intelligence based anti-narcotics operation at sea.
The operation was an epitome of inter-agency coordination wherein ICG, ATS and NCB collaborated seamlessly which culminated in the successful operation.
The ships and aircraft of ICG were deployed on concurrent missions to effect the operation. ICG ship Rajratan, which had NCB and ATS officials embarked, positively identified the suspect boat.
No amount of evasive manoeuvring tactics employed by the drug laden boat could save it from the swift and strong ICG ship Rajratan.
Ship’s specialist team embarked the suspect boat and after thorough checks, confirmed the presence of the sizeable amount of narcotics.
The Pakistani boat, along with its crew, has been apprehended and is being brought to Porbandar for further investigations. The joint operations of ICG and ATS, which has led to eleven such successful law enforcement operations in the last three years itself reaffirms the synergy for national objectives.
Incidentally, the seizure on Sunday just a day after the NCB busted three labs manufacturing the banned drug mephedrone, popularly known as ‘meow meow,’ in Gujarat and Rajasthan and arrested seven people in connection with the matter.
The anti-drugs agency has seized narcotics worth approximately `300 crore. The labs were busted after the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) of Gujarat Police received information from a confidential source regarding the labs operating in Gujarat and Rajasthan, producing the drug mephedrone.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on February 28 this year lauded the Indian Navy and NCB’s joint operation in seizing almost 3,300 kilograms of contraband off the coast of Gujarat and called it a ‘testament’ to the government’s unwavering commitment to making India a drug-free nation.
The Narcotics Control Bureau, along with the Indian Navy, intercepted a suspicious boat off the Gujarat coast, seizing nearly 3,300 kilograms of contraband.
The Indian Navy, in a statement, declared this seizure the “largest” in recent times in terms of quantity. The items seized included 3,089 kg of charas, 158 kilograms of methamphetamine, and 25 kilograms of morphine.
Commending the joint operation, Home Minister Shah posted on X, “Pursuing PM Narendra Modi’s vision of a drug-free Bharat, our agencies today achieved the grand success of making the biggest offshore seizure of drugs in the nation. In a joint operation carried out by the NCB, the Navy, and the Gujarat Police, a gigantic consignment of 3132 kilograms of drugs was seized.”
He also said, “The historic success is a testament to our government’s unwavering commitment to making our nation drug-free. On this occasion, I congratulate the NCB, the Navy, and the Gujarat Police.”
