Pune Airport Drug Bust: Hashish Worth Rs 1 Crore Concealed in Hair Treatment, Body Scrub Jars
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Pune, 2nd October 2026: Officers of Pune Customs’ Air Intelligence Unit (AIU), along with the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Pune Regional Unit, seized 1.243 kg of suspected cannabis extract (hashish), valued at approximately ₹1 crore, from an Indian woman passenger at Pune International Airport in Lohegaon.
According to senior customs officials, the seizure was made on the evening of October 1 following behavioural profiling and screening of suspicious check-in baggage.
The passenger had arrived in Pune from Bangkok on Air India Express flight IX-241. During the examination of her check-in baggage, officers allegedly found a waxy, semi-solid substance with a pungent odour concealed inside three commercial cosmetic jars.
Officials said the containers were designed to resemble ordinary personal-care products. Two of the jars were labelled as “Rice & Yolk Hair Treatment”, while another was labelled as “Body Scrub”.
The substance was subjected to a preliminary test using a Narcotic Drug Field Testing Kit and returned a positive result for cannabis, officials said.
The entire recovered substance, weighing 1.243 kg and suspected to be cannabis extract (hashish), was seized under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.
The passenger has been arrested, and further investigation is underway to establish the source of the contraband and other details of the case, officials said.
Customs and DRI officials said the case also highlights the use of unconventional concealment methods to allegedly evade detection during airport screening.
