Kolkata: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized more than 55,000 smuggled e-cigarettes worth Rs 13.5 crore (yaani Rs 135 million) at the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port in Kolkata, in two operations carried out on specific intelligence, the agency said in a release reported on Wednesday.
Source: NewsAge (DRI release)
DRI officers intercepted two containers carrying Nepal-bound transshipment consignments. The goods had been mis-declared — as “water glass” in one container and “ceramic mugs” in the other — the agency said.
A detailed examination of the first container led to the recovery of 40,000 e-cigarettes of the IGET brand in various flavours, hidden among the declared cargo. The second container yielded around 15,000 e-cigarettes of various brands, including VTV, VOKO, Bang and Ejoy, also hidden among the declared cargo, according to the DRI.
The e-cigarettes were seized along with the cover cargo under the relevant sections of the Customs Act. Electronic cigarettes and all Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) are prohibited in India under the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019, which was enacted in the interest of public health.
In the current financial year 2026-27, the DRI has already seized around 3,00,000 e-cigarettes worth more than Rs 120 crore at various ports, airports and Inland Container Depots in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi and West Bengal, the agency said, describing the Kolkata seizure as part of a sustained crackdown on illicit trade.