The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Mumbai Zonal Unit, has busted a major cigarette smuggling racket at Nhava Sheva Port, seizing foreign-origin cigarettes worth over ₹13.18 crore. One person has been arrested in connection with the case.
Acting on specific intelligence, DRI officials intercepted a suspicious container at the port and recovered 1,014 cartons of ‘TOP GUN’ brand cigarettes, amounting to 1.01 crore sticks. The consignment had been falsely declared as “coated calcium carbonate” to evade detection and pass off as a legitimate import.
The accused involved in the illegal import has been arrested and produced before the court, which has remanded him to 14 days of judicial custody.
According to DRI, the import violated provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 and the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Rules, 2008, which were amended by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in March 2018. The entire consignment has been seized under the Customs Act.
Authorities say the smuggling of foreign-origin cigarettes leads to heavy revenue losses for the government and severely disrupts the domestic tobacco industry by undermining fair competition. More importantly, such illicit products often bypass essential statutory health regulations, including those under the COTPA Act, which mandate health warnings and content disclosures.
Officials also warned that these smuggled cigarettes pose a grave threat to public health, particularly affecting youth and economically weaker sections who may unknowingly consume unregulated and potentially more harmful products.