Coast Guard seizes 526kg drugs worth over ₹3,000 crore off Lakshadweep, five Pakistanis held
Indian Coast Guard personnel intercept a suspicious dhow in the Arabian Sea during a joint anti-narcotics operation with Gujarat ATS. (Image courtesy: X/@IndiaCoastGuard)
New Delhi: The Indian Coast Guard has intercepted an Iranian dhow west of Lakshadweep in a joint operation with the Gujarat ATS (anti-terrorism squad), seizing about 526 kilograms of heroin and methamphetamine valued at more than ₹3,000 crore in the international market. Five Pakistani nationals aboard the vessel were apprehended during the September 25 operation and have been brought to Mumbai along with the dhow and the seized narcotics.
The operation followed actionable intelligence about the suspicious vessel in the Arabian Sea. Coast Guard assets conducted coordinated sea and air surveillance, tracked and pursued the dhow before boarding it and recovering the narcotics.
The Coast Guard identified the seized contraband as heroin and methamphetamine but did not provide a separate quantity for each drug. The estimated international market value of the combined consignment was placed at more than ₹3,000 crore.
The Iranian dhow, the five apprehended crew members and the seized drugs were escorted to Mumbai under armed security for joint interrogation and further multi agency legal proceedings. Gujarat ATS also confirmed the apprehension of the five Pakistani nationals.
Authorities have not publicly disclosed the identities of those apprehended, the ownership or precise registration details of the dhow, the origin of the narcotics or their intended destination. No evidence released so far establishes involvement by either Iran or Pakistan as a state, or a link between the consignment and terror financing.
The seizure adds to a series of intelligence led operations targeting narcotics trafficking through maritime routes in the Arabian Sea. In April 2025, the Coast Guard and Gujarat ATS seized 307.5 kg of narcotics valued at about ₹1,800 crore off the Gujarat coast, according to official Coast Guard records.
The Coast Guard’s maritime law enforcement role includes surveillance and interdiction of illegal activity at sea, frequently in coordination with state and central enforcement agencies. In the latest operation, Gujarat ATS was involved in the intelligence and law enforcement effort, while Coast Guard assets carried out the maritime tracking and interception.
The Coast Guard linked the operation to its zero-tolerance approach towards narcotics trafficking and the Union government’s Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan. It said maritime interdictions were intended to disrupt the financial and logistical networks behind transnational drug trafficking, prevent narcotics from reaching Indian shores and strengthen security across India’s maritime domain.
The Coast Guard described the seizure as a “record” operation and used the term “narco-terrorism” in its release, although it did not specify the benchmark for the record claim or disclose evidence establishing a terrorism-financing connection.
Investigators in Mumbai will now seek to establish the dhow’s ownership and route, the origin and intended destination of the narcotics, the roles of those aboard and whether a wider transnational trafficking network was behind the consignment.
