DRI seizes foreign cigarettes worth Rs 20 lakh in Bhopal

A joint team of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence Indore and Bhopal zonal seized more than 1 lakh sticks of smuggled foreign origin cigarettes worth Rs 20 lakh, sources said on Saturday. They were seized on Thursday in Bhopal.

As per DRI, recently sleuths got a tip-off that huge quantity of smuggled foreign origin cigarettes have been kept in godowns in Bhopal. Working on the information, DRI sleuths on Thursday searched the godowns and found more than 1 lakh foreign origin cigarette sticks of brands like Djarum Black, Esse, Pine, Mond, Gudang Garam.

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) is an Indian intelligence agency. It is India's apex anti-smuggling intelligence, investigations and operations agency. According to DRI, the goods were seized under Customs Act 1962, Cigarettes and other Tobacco

Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003, as amended, and Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Amendment Rules, 2020.

During the investigation, it was found that these cigarettes had been smuggled into India and arrived in Bhopal via Delhi. These smuggled cigarettes are popular among the youth and are sold at the local pan shops to the trusted customers only. (ANI)