Iranian Boat Carrying Drugs Worth Rs 425 Crore Seized Along Gujarat Coast, Five Arrested

The Indian Coast Guard deployed its two fast patrol class ships, ICGS Meera Behn and ICGS Abheek, for patrolling the Arabian Sea.

Indian Coast Guard apprehends Iranian boat with drugs

New Delhi: In a joint operation by the Indian Coast Guard and the Gujarat ATS, an Iranian boat with five Iranian crew members that were allegedly carrying 61 kilograms of heroin worth Rs 425 crore near Okha in the Kutch district off the Gujarat coast was seized, said an official, reported news agency PTI.

The operation took place late on Monday night.

The Indian Coast Guard deployed its two fast patrol class ships, ICGS Meera Behn and ICGS Abheek, for patrolling in the Arabian Sea on the basis of a specific intelligence input shared by the Gujarat Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS), according to a Monday night release from the Defence PRO.

#BreakingNews

In joint #operation with ATS #Gujarat , @IndiaCoastGuard apprehended #Iranian Boat with 05 crew & 61 kgs #narcotics (worth Rs 425 cr) in #Indian 🇮🇳waters at #ArabianSea off Gujarat

Boat being brought to #Okha for further #investigation @CMOGuj @giridhararamane pic.twitter.com/anEXOk8gqr

— PRO Defence Gujarat (@DefencePRO_Guj) March 6, 2023

"During the night, a boat was observed moving suspiciously in Indian waters around 340 kilometres off Okha coast. On being challenged by ICG ships, the boat started evasive manoeuvring. The boat was then chased and forced to stop by ICG ships," it said.

"The boat was found to be an Iranian boat with five crew of Iranian nationality. During investigation by the ICG boarding team, around 61 kilograms of narcotics worth Rs 425 crore were found in the boat. The boat along with crew has been apprehended and is being brought to Okha for further investigation," said the release. 

Another Coast Guard team is reportedly looking for the party that was supposed to receive the drugs from the Iranian dhow in the high seas, according to sources. The previous seizure occurred four months before this one.