Divers of the Indian Coast Guard have picked up five packets of gold from the Gulf of Mannar. The weight of these packages is 15 kgs. This was found in the course of a joint anti-smuggling operation by the Indian Coast Guard and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence. It is said that two suspects in a fishing boat were picked up for questioning near Rameswaram.
The usual practice for seasoned smugglers was to drop the contraband into the sea to avoid getting caught by Navy or Indian Coast Guard patrol boats. They would then mark the spot using a compass or GPS trackers to return at an opportune moment to pick up the consignment. The worth of the gold is said to be around Rs 6.3 crores. The arrest of the smugglers has brought to light the smuggling activities as the high import duty on gold has made smuggling of the precious metals more lucrative.
