Gold smuggling under focus as agencies detect rise in attempts after import duty hike

Gold has once again come under the radar of enforcement agencies at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, with officers involved in surveillance and interception operations noticing a pattern of rise in smuggling attempts following the recent hike in import duty and surge in domestic prices of the precious metal.

Officials from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence and Customs said passenger profiling, seizure analysis and interception trends over the past several months indicate a renewed shift by organised syndicates towards smuggling gold through air routes, particularly from Gulf countries and parts of Africa.

The trend comes after the Union government increased import duty on gold and silver to 15% from 6% in a move aimed at curbing overseas purchases and reducing pressure on the country’s foreign exchange reserves. Officials said the widening gap between international and domestic prices has once again made gold smuggling profitable for syndicates, carriers and handlers.

“Gold is very much under our radar right now because interception patterns clearly indicate an increase in attempts after the import duty changes and rise in prices,” an officer involved in anti-smuggling surveillance said.

Gold seizures

Earlier this month on May 2, DRI officials seized 3.5 kg of foreign-origin gold worth over ₹3.45 crore at RGIA and arrested three persons, including two airport ground handling staffers allegedly involved in the operation. Officials said the gold bars were discreetly transferred near the aerobridge before being moved out of the airport premises.

In February, based on Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) profiling, Customs officials intercepted a passenger arriving from Jeddah on flight 6E 68. During examination of the baggage, 44.40 grams of gold valued at ₹7.09 lakh was found concealed inside an iron press.

Officials said similar concealment methods and interception patterns have also been noticed at airports across the country after the import duty changes. On May 21, Customs officials at Delhi’s IGI Airport seized 396 grams of 24K gold dust concealed inside commercial chocolate packets from a passenger arriving from Riyadh. On May 15, officials intercepted a US citizen arriving from San Francisco with 3.565 kg of gold, including 115 bars worth over ₹5.5 crore, stitched into trouser pockets and a specially designed body belt. A day earlier, on May 14, officials seized 350.5 grams of gold welded into silver-coated fake compartments inside water bottles carried by passengers arriving from Jeddah and Doha.

“Whenever gold prices rise sharply, smuggling and black marketing also increase because the margins become substantial. Syndicates constantly assess which commodity fetches better commissions at a particular time,” a senior DRI officer said.

Adapting to market demand

Another officer said smuggling networks often function with what agencies describe as a “seasonal approach”. “If gold brings better returns, they move towards gold. If narcotics fetch higher profits, they shift towards narcotics. These networks keep adapting according to market demand and profit margins,” the officer said.

A Customs officer said teams rely heavily on profiling, behavioural analysis and intelligence inputs to identify suspects. “We monitor travel patterns, suspicious baggage movement, frequent flyer activity and intelligence alerts. Once intercepted, detailed examination is carried out and the concealed gold is retrieved depending on the method used,” the officer said.

Carriers

Officials said syndicates are increasingly using ordinary passengers, airport insiders and frequent international flyers as carriers while continuously changing concealment techniques to avoid detection.