Indian Coast Guard apprehends Pakistani boat with huge consignment of narcotics

In a major success, the Indian Coast Guard, following an overnight aerial-maritime joint operation with the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), on Sunday apprehended a Pakistan boat in the Arabian Sea, west of Gujarat's Porbandar, and seized a large haul of narcotics.

The operation, involving extensive coordination among multiple agencies, resulted in the capture of 14 crew members along with the illegal cargo of 86 kg of narcotics, valued at Rs 600 crore, officials said.

"The Coast Guard deployed ships and aircraft for this intelligence-driven anti-narcotics mission, demonstrating effective multi-agency teamwork. ICG ship Rajratan, with ATS and NCB officials on board, identified and pursued the suspect vessel. Despite the boat's attempts at evasive manoeuvres, it was no match for the well-equipped Rajratan. A specialist team from the ship boarded the vessel, conducted a thorough search, and confirmed the significant haul of narcotics," an official said.

The captured boat and crew are being transported to Porbandar for further investigation.

This operation marks the eleventh of its kind in the past three years and comes after an interception last month that led to the seizure of 80 kg of drugs, as per the ICG.