DRI Busts Pan-India Gold Smuggling Rackets, Seizes 41 kg Foreign Gold Worth ₹62 Crore

In a major crackdown on organized smuggling networks, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized approximately 41 kg of foreign-origin gold, valued at nearly ₹62 crore, during six intelligence-led operations across India. The coordinated raids led to the arrest of 24 individuals, including three foreign nationals, exposing sophisticated concealment methods and covert processing facilities used by illicit syndicates operating via air, rail, and border routes. In one significant operation in Delhi, DRI officers raided a residential facility that housed melting, rolling, and die-cutting machinery used to convert smuggled gold bars into jewelry. Officials seized four 1-kg foreign gold bars and 6.2 kg of newly manufactured gold chains at the location. Additional seizures took place in Delhi from a vehicle arriving from Punjab, and at the Halderpara Border Outpost along the Indo-Bangladesh border, where Border Security Force (BSF) personnel collaborated with DRI to intercept 89 pieces of smuggled gold bars weighing 11.3 kg. The series of busts highlights the growing threat of transnational gold smuggling into India and underscores the Union Finance Ministry's stepped-up surveillance across key trade corridors and international transit points.