Based on specific intelligence developed, officers of DRI Ahmedabad intercepted an import consignment at Mundra port. The consignment was declared as "Auto Air Freshener" and was shipped from Jebel Ali port.

During the detailed examination of the said consignment, officers noticed that the 1st row packages in the container were of declared goods i.e.  "Auto Air Freshener". However, behind the said 1st row, all the packages were containing foreign origin Cigarettes "Gold Flakes". Majority of these foreign origin cigarettes were bearing the markings "Made in Turkey". Accordingly total 32.5 lakhs of these sticks were seized under Panchanama proceedings. The value of the seized cigarettes is estimated to be around Rs. 6.5 crores.

It was also observed that some of the cigarette's packets were having marking of “Made in India”. Officers in contact with field experts to identify possibility of attempt to import counterfeit cigarettes or likewise.

The seizure is a major success for the DRI and will have a significant impact on the smuggling of foreign cigarettes in India.

Further investigation is under progress.

CB/GP/JD

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