In Brief:
Pune Customs seized 10.47 kg of hydroponic marijuana from a passenger arriving from Bangkok at Pune International Airport.
The accused, Abhinay Amarnath Yadav, was arrested and remanded to judicial custody under the NDPS Act.
Authorities are probing possible links to international drug syndicates amid rising smuggling of high-grade marijuana into India.
Pune, 25 July 2025: In one of the city's biggest recent drug seizures, Customs officials at Pune International Airport confiscated over 10 kilograms of high-grade hydroponic marijuana, commonly known as “hydro weed,” from a passenger who had arrived from Bangkok.
The accused, identified as Abhinay Amarnath Yadav, landed in Pune on July 24 via IndiGo flight 6E-1096. Officials flagged him for a detailed baggage check after observing suspicious behaviour. During inspection, 10.47 kg of hydroponic cannabis was found concealed in his luggage.
Hydroponic marijuana is a high-potency variant of cannabis grown using water-based techniques without soil. Its growing demand, especially in metro cities, has led to increased vigilance by Indian enforcement agencies at airports and cargo hubs.
According to officials, the seized contraband is valued at around ₹10.5 crore in the illegal drug market. Following the seizure, Yadav was booked under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 and taken into custody. He was later produced before a magistrate and remanded to judicial custody.
Customs authorities have launched a detailed investigation to uncover the source of the drugs and any potential connections to international drug syndicates.
Officials said the case highlights growing attempts by traffickers to use regional airports for smuggling high-value narcotics and reaffirmed their commitment to tightening surveillance to curb such activities.
