Customs officials in New Delhi have confiscated gold worth 29 million rupees ($350,000) concealed inside body shapers carried by three passengers.
The smugglers arrived from Sharjah on October 28, where officials checked their baggage and found seven rectangular-shaped pouches containing chemical paste.
A body shaper is a wide, stretchable belt meant to be wrapped around the abdomen that can be used in slimming.
The paste hidden inside them was found to contain gold and pouches weighed nearly 8 kilograms.
“The gold in paste form was concealed in seven pouches kept inside pockets of body shapers, kept in hand bags,” Delhi Customs said.
About 6.67 kilograms of gold was extracted from the paste which was moulded into 19 rectangular bars.
The three people were arrested and an investigation has begun.
The incident is the latest in a string of attempts by travellers to avoid paying the nearly 13 per cent import tax on gold.
Confiscations at Delhi, Mumbai and Kerala airports from people travelling from the Gulf are common. Officers have discovered gold in a juicer, wrapped into belts, in mobile phones and under wigs.
Customs officials in Chennai in southern Tamil Nadu confiscated gold worth $20,800 hidden inside DVD players by a passenger arriving from Dubai on Sunday.
The gold, weighing 385 grams, was found when officers examined the passenger’s check-in baggage.
Chennai Customs reported a case on Saturday in which a passenger from Dubai was found with 525 grams of gold.
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
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It’ll be summer in the city as car show tries to move with the times
If 2008 was the year that rocked Detroit, 2019 will be when Motor City gives its annual car extravaganza a revamp that aims to move with the times.
A major change is that this week's North American International Auto Show will be the last to be held in January, after which the event will switch to June.
The new date, organisers said, will allow exhibitors to move vehicles and activities outside the Cobo Center's halls and into other city venues, unencumbered by cold January weather, exemplified this week by snow and ice.
In a market in which trends can easily be outpaced beyond one event, the need to do so was probably exacerbated by the decision of Germany's big three carmakers – BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi – to skip the auto show this year.
The show has long allowed car enthusiasts to sit behind the wheel of the latest models at the start of the calendar year but a more fluid car market in an online world has made sales less seasonal.
Similarly, everyday technology seems to be catching up on those whose job it is to get behind microphones and try and tempt the visiting public into making a purchase.
Although sparkly announcers clasp iPads and outline the technical gadgetry hidden beneath bonnets, people's obsession with their own smartphones often appeared to offer a more tempting distraction.
“It's maddening,” said one such worker at Nissan's stand.
The absence of some pizzazz, as well as top marques, was also noted by patrons.
“It looks like there are a few less cars this year,” one annual attendee said of this year's exhibitors.
“I can't help but think it's easier to stay at home than to brave the snow and come here.”
