Northeast remains preferred route for smuggling gold

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: A recent spurt in smuggling of illegal gold highlights the continuing use of the Northeast by smugglers as a preferred route for transporting the contraband yellow metal, but enhanced alertness on the part of sleuths of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) is proving to be a hindrance for the criminals.

DRI sources revealed that recent gold seizures in the Northeast by the agency point to a spurt in the international smuggling of gold through the borders of neighbouring Bangladesh and Myanmar into the Northeastern states. From this part of the country, the smuggled gold is sent to other parts of the country. The detections and seizures provided fresh insight into the new modus operandi by a network of criminals smuggling foreign-origin gold into India through the Northeast, the sources added.

The new modus operandi came to light following a pan-India operation by the DRI, when sleuths of the agency seized 61 kg of foreign-origin gold, Rs 13 lakh in cash, and 19 vehicles used by smugglers from Guwahati, Barpeta, Muzaffarapur, Araria, and Gorakhpur on March 12 and 13, 2024, and arrested 12 persons, including the masterminds.

A few days earlier, on March 10, 2024, Guwahati Customs seized 29 pieces of gold bars weighing 4.8 kg and valued at Rs 3.24 crore from a person about to board the Avadh Assam Express at Kamakhya railway station, with the gold concealed around his waist.

It should be mentioned here that smugglers are using diverse and ingenious modes of smuggling, some of which were detected by DRI in 2022–23. Gold was being smuggled through international cargo, baggage, courier modes, and by passengers who arrive in India through land, sea, and air routes, the DRI found out. It was further revealed that a major part of the gold was smuggled through the land route (52%), while other routes like air (29%), sea (7%), and others (12%) were used to a lesser or greater degree.

Moreover, smuggling of gold through the Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Nepal borders continued to remain lucrative, the DRI found, after large quantities were seized while being smuggled into the country through these borders. Most often, the gold is converted into compounds like paste or powder and transported using carriers travelling on domestic flights, trains, and local buses. Gold in compound form is the preferred mode due to the ease of concealment in the body of the carrier and the difficulty of detection by customs and other law-enforcement agencies.

Specially-made cavities in vehicles are also used to transport gold through land borders.

Also Read: STF of Assam Police seizes fake gold in Guwahati city (sentinelassam.com)

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