Jaipur Airport: Customs department seizes 1 Kg of gold smuggled from Muscat

JAIPUR: In a major crackdown on gold smuggling, the Customs Department in Rajasthan has seized 7.8 kg of gold in two separate operations.

The first operation took place at Jaipur Airport, where a passenger was found with 995 grams of gold worth Rs. 64.87 lakhs hidden inside their socks.

The passenger was a resident of Shekhawati and had arrived by flight from Muscat in the morning.

The second operation took place in Jodhpur, where the Customs Department arrested two people who were smuggling gold worth Rs 4 crore from Mumbai to Rajasthan.

The smugglers were caught from their seats in the sleeper coach of a train and the recovered gold weighed 6.3 kg, hidden in capsule form.

In addition to these seizures, the DRI team also caught two smugglers at Churu station on February 28 with 4 kg 200 grams of gold biscuits worth Rs 2.68 crores.

The smugglers were brought to Jaipur and presented before the court, which sent them to jail for further investigation.

The Customs Department has noticed that gold smuggling trends are evolving and becoming more sophisticated. Old methods such as hiding gold in private parts (rectum), sewing machine, torch, induction cooker, radio and other electronic items, and inside shoes have become less common.

Instead, new methods such as making a paste of gold and hiding it in condoms or creating secret pockets inside undergarments are being used by smugglers nowadays .

Additionally, smugglers are also changing the color and form of gold for smuggling by turning it white or pink through chemicals or converting it into liquid paste that can be filled easily into any item .

This makes it difficult for officials to identify golden color when they check luggage at airport . This is concerning because these new methods make it easier for people to transport large amounts undetected, which could lead too much more significant losses revenue due to lack of detection.