Ahmedabad: The Customs Department at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) Airport in the city seized gold worth around Rs 4.26 crore from an aircraft.

The gold was found concealed inside an IndiGo aircraft that had arrived from Dubai in the form of 24 foreign-origin gold biscuits weighing 2,799.3 grams. The seizure was made during a rummaging operation conducted on board IndiGo flight 6E-1478 after its arrival from Dubai.

Customs officials searched the aircraft and, with the assistance of aircraft engineers, recovered two pouches wrapped in black plastic tape from inside a speaker box located in the front lavatory.

Customs said the manner in which the gold had been concealed indicated an attempt to smuggle it into India in violation of the Customs Act, 1962.

Officials said the contraband appeared to have been hidden by an unidentified individual, and no one came forward to claim ownership of the recovered gold. As a result, the gold was seized as unclaimed under the relevant provisions of the Act. Further investigation is underway to identify those responsible for the smuggling attempt and to determine whether the seizure is linked to a larger network operating on Gulf routes. DeshGujarat