Indian authorities recently seized 30 kg of hashish oil that was being smuggled from India to the Maldives. The operation, carried out by the Indian Coast Guard and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), took place on March 5 when they intercepted a tugboat traveling from Tuticorin to Male'.

The drugs seized are valued at an estimated MVR 58 million (approximately INR 33 crore). Acting on a tip-off, the Coast Guard halted the vessel in the Gulf of Mannar before escorting it back to Tuticorin for further investigation. The country's Ministry of Defense confirmed that the substance was identified as hashish oil.

The nine crew members aboard the tugboat have been transferred to the DRI for questioning. This follows a similar incident in January, when Indian authorities apprehended four individuals trying to smuggle 12 kg of hashish oil to the Maldives aboard a yacht.