DRI seizes nearly 3 lakh illegal e-cigarettes and vapes worth Rs 120 crore during anti-smuggling operations across four Indian states.
New Delhi, May 21: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has seized nearly three lakh electronic cigarettes and vapes valued at around Rs 120 crore during a major anti-smuggling operation conducted across Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi and West Bengal.
According to an official statement issued on Wednesday, the seizures were made during coordinated operations carried out over the past few days at ports, airports and Inland Container Depots (ICDs) in different parts of the country.
Officials said the crackdown was launched following specific intelligence inputs regarding illegal import of prohibited nicotine products into India. During the investigation, DRI officers identified and tracked multiple suspicious consignments that were allegedly mis-declared to avoid customs scrutiny.
Detailed examination of the consignments led to the recovery of around 3,00,000 electronic cigarettes and vaping devices of different brands, flavours and specifications. The agency said the smuggled products were sourced from China in all the detected cases.
According to the DRI, the consignments had been falsely declared as goods such as “Furniture” and “Metal Chair Parts” in an attempt to conceal the prohibited items and evade detection by customs authorities.
Electronic cigarettes and other Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) are banned in India under the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019. The legislation prohibits the production, manufacture, import, export, transport, sale, distribution, storage and advertisement of e-cigarettes in the country.
The law was enacted by the central government citing concerns over public health and the harmful effects of nicotine addiction, especially among young people.
Officials said the latest seizures indicate the existence of an organised smuggling network attempting to illegally bring prohibited vaping products into the Indian market through concealed imports and false declarations.
The DRI has not yet disclosed details regarding arrests or further investigations linked to the seized consignments. However, officials indicated that efforts are continuing to identify the individuals and entities involved in the racket.
The agency stated that surveillance and enforcement activities against illegal import of prohibited goods would continue at ports and other cargo handling centres across the country.
