Customs officials at Pune International Airport in Lohegaon seized 1.265 kg of hydroponic weed valued at around Rs 44.27 lakh (yaani just over Rs 44 lakh) and arrested a passenger who arrived from Bangkok, officials said on Tuesday, IANS reported.

The passenger was intercepted by the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) and the Airport Batch of Pune Customs on October 19 after arriving on Air India Express flight IX-241 from Bangkok. A detailed search of his black trolley bag found the contraband concealed in two specially created cavities inside the bag's side linings, hidden beneath his personal belongings. Officials opened the inner lining and recovered two vacuum-sealed plastic packets containing a yellowish-green dried floral substance, and preliminary field tests confirmed it was high-grade marijuana, commonly known as hydroponic weed, officials said.

The entire consignment was seized under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. The passenger was arrested under the relevant provisions of the NDPS Act and produced before a competent judicial magistrate, who remanded him to judicial custody, officials said. The passenger was not named in the reports.

Customs officials have begun further investigation to establish the source of the narcotic substance and identify the individuals involved in the alleged international smuggling operation. Investigators are also examining the possible supply chain and the arrested passenger's alleged links with other members of the trafficking network, officials said.