Mumbai Airport Customs Under Fire: Drugs & Currency Seizures Run into Crores

In multiple raids over recent days, Mumbai Customs seized narcotics and large sums of undeclared foreign currency. Several passengers were arrested under NDPS and Customs Act provisions.

Mumbai | November 05, 2025:Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) has recently become the site of a flurry of customs operations targeting drug smuggling and illegal currency movement. Officials say these actions were based on intelligence-led profiling and cross-checks.

One report states that customs officers seized roughly ₹13.83 crore worth of drug consignments in two separate cases.Those seizures involved hydroponic weed brought in via international flights, and the accused were booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

In another series of operations between September 17–18, customs officials recovered both narcotics and undeclared foreign currency, the combined value reportedly exceeding ₹20 crore. Two passengers were detained in connection with those seizures.

Yet another operation uncovered hydroponic weed, foreign currency, and even small amounts of unclaimed gold. In that case, for example, a passenger arriving from Colombo was found with marijuana hidden in baggage, while in separate checks, currency and gold were also confiscated.

These raids reflect a pattern of increasingly large and frequent seizures at the airport. Customs officials say the operations were carried out under the Customs Act, 1962 and NDPS Act, 1985, and are part of efforts to crack down on cross-border smuggling.

However, questions remain about how traffickers attempt to circumvent security and detection—and how customs authorities can keep ahead of evolving smuggling methods. Long-term solutions may require better intelligence sharing, more sophisticated screening, and stricter monitoring of flagged routes.

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