New Delhi: The Indian Navy, supported by a multilateral combined task force, has seized 940 kg of contraband narcotics in the Western Arabian Sea, officials said on Tuesday.
Indian Navy's elite MARCOs commandos, deployed onboard frontline ship INS Talwar, seized the narcotics from a 'dhow' on April 13 as part of an operation named 'Crimson Barracuda', an Indian Navy spokesperson said.
It was the first time that the Indian Navy carried out a "drug interdiction" as a member of the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF). INS Talwar, operating in support of the Canadian-led Combined Task Force (CTF) 150, conducted its first interdiction of illicit narcotics as a member of CMF, seizing 940 kg of drugs in the Arabian Sea, the CMF said.
The CMF is a 42-nation naval partnership aimed at upholding the international rules-based order by promoting security and stability across 3.2 million square miles of water encompassing some of the world's most important shipping lanes.
"Indian Naval ship INS Talwar, mission deployed in Western Arabian Sea for maritime security operations, as part of combined task force led operation Crimson Barracuda successfully apprehended a suspicious dhow on April 13," the Indian Navy spokesperson said.
"The ship's specialist boarding teams and MARCOs seized 940 kgs of contraband narcotics. The drugs are being disposed off as per standard operating procedures," he said.
The Indian Navy seized the narcotics with support from the CTF 150. The CTF 150 is one of five task forces under CMF, the world's largest international naval partnership.
CTF 150's mission is to deter and disrupt the ability of non-state actors to move weapons, drugs and other illicit substances in the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman.
INS Talwar seized 453 kg of methamphetamines, 416 kg of hash and 71 kg of heroin from the dhow as part of the 'Focused Operation Crimson Barracuda, the CMF said in a statement.
The Indian Navy joined CMF last November. "I commend the crew of INS Talwar for their efforts throughout this Focused Operation and their hard work has paid off with this seizure of 940 kg of drugs," said Royal Canadian Navy's Capt. Colin Matthews, Commander, CTF 150.
"This seizure, the fourth of this Focused Operation, demonstrates the effectiveness and professionalism of CMF, and of the Indian Navy, in deterring and disrupting criminal and terrorist activities at sea."
Crimson Barracuda, which concluded on April 15, focused on countering terrorist and criminal organizations' use of the high seas to conduct smuggling operations in the Western Indian Ocean region.
