Bhubaneswar, 21 October (H.S.): In a major operation, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Bhubaneswar Regional Unit, seized cigarettes, cigars, and electronic goods worth approximately ₹27 lakh at the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) on Tuesday.

Acting on specific intelligence inputs, DRI officials intercepted three Indian passengers who had arrived from Abu Dhabi. Upon inspection of their checked-in baggage, officials recovered a substantial quantity of undeclared items, including 38,400 cigarettes, 4,000 cigars, and 1,228 e-cigarette cartridges. Additionally, six DJI MIC Mini wireless microphones and ten refurbished Dell Latitude laptops were found concealed in their luggage.

The passengers failed to produce valid documents for the goods, following which the items were seized under provisions of the Customs Act, 1962. The confiscated materials have been handed over to the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Bhubaneswar Customs for further investigation.

Preliminary inquiry suggests that the seized goods were being smuggled into the country to evade customs duty and were intended for illegal sale in local markets. Officials have launched a detailed probe to identify and trace the key individuals behind the smuggling network.

Notably, this comes just weeks after a similar operation on October 4, when DRI officials seized hydroponic weed worth ₹3 crore and detained a youth at the same airport.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda