Mizoram: DRI seizes 43.2 lakh smuggled cigarettes worth ₹8.64 crore

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized 43.2 lakh foreign-origin cigarette sticks worth ₹8.64 crore in Mizoram, the Union Finance Ministry said, according to India Today NE on Tuesday, October 20. The cigarettes are suspected to have been smuggled from Myanmar.

The interception

Acting on specific intelligence, officers of the DRI's Aizawl Regional Unit stopped a truck at Tuirial village on the Champhai-Aizawl road as it headed towards the state capital.

A search turned up 432 cases holding 43.2 lakh sticks of "Patron" brand cigarettes, the official statement said.

No health warnings

The packets did not carry the pictorial and health warnings required under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA).

The cigarettes and the truck were seized under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962, and the driver was arrested.

Smuggling routes

The DRI said the seizure showed how cross-border routes are being used to move foreign-origin tobacco products illegally, and that it was part of its efforts to break up smuggling networks and tighten enforcement in vulnerable border areas.

A preliminary investigation indicates the cigarettes were smuggled into Mizoram from Myanmar through the Zokhawthar sector of the border, according to the Press Information Bureau release. The truck was intercepted on the Champhai-Aizawl road while heading towards the capital.

The seized goods

• 432 cases of cigarettes
• 43.2 lakh sticks in all
• estimated value: ₹8.64 crore
• brand: "Patron"
• one truck, seized along with the goods

What the law says

Under COTPA, all tobacco packs sold in India must carry the prescribed pictorial health warnings. Goods brought into the country without paying duty, or in violation of import rules, can be seized under the Customs Act, along with the vehicles used to carry them.

What's next

The DRI's investigation is continuing to trace the source and intended buyers of the consignment.