Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seizes 362 MT Pakistan-origin dry dates

New Delhi: DRI officers have seized more than 362 MT of Pakistan-origin dry dates and thwarted attempts to circumvent India's prohibition on imports from the neighbouring country, the finance ministry said on Monday.

Acting on specific intelligence, the officers of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) intercepted 13 containers of dry dates imported by a Mumbai-based firm at Container Freight Station (CFS) Ambad, Nashik.

The consignments arrived from Jebel Ali, UAE, with import documents declaring the UAE as the country of origin.


Preliminary investigation revealed a trans-shipment arrangement designed to conceal the Pakistan origin of the goods. The dry dates were initially shipped from Karachi Port, Pakistan, to Jebel Ali Port, UAE, in one set of containers aboard one vessel.

At Jebel Ali Port, the goods were merely trans-shipped and transferred to another set of containers and loaded onto a different vessel for onward shipment to India through entities operated by Pakistani nationals.

Following the Pahalgam terror attack, India has imposed a complete prohibition on the direct or indirect import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan, with effect from May 2, 2025.

In response, DRI, under 'Operation Deep Manifest', has been consistently identifying, intercepting and seizing Pakistan-origin goods attempted to be imported into India through third-country routing.