The Customs Department on June 30 said it had seized 532 kg of suspected heroin, worth around 2,700 crore, being smuggled from Pakistan in a truck through the trade route at the Attari border, reports The Hindu. “A consignment of 532 kg of suspected heroin and another 52 kg of suspected mixed narcotics were seized in the import consignment at Integrated Check Post, Attari on June 29. The consignment was hidden under bags of salt in the truck which had come from Pakistan,” an official said. One person was also arrested while another was detained, adds The Indian Express. Apart from the heroin, 52 kg of a mixed narcotic substance was also seized at the Integrated Check Post (ICP), Amritsar. The contraband was being smuggled from Pakistan via the trade route. Kashmiri salt trader Tarik Ahmad Lone was arrested and Amritsar-based importer, Gurpinder Singh was detained by the Customs in the case. Pakistan exporter, Global Vision Impex, Wagah, Lahore had sent the consignment into India for Kanishk Enterprise ASR owned by Gurpinder. The consignment crossed into India via trucks on June 26 and was unloaded into an open space meant for storage. Interestingly, the large consignment went through truck scanners installed by Pakistan customs on their side of the border. There are no truck scanners installed on the Indian side. “There must be some lapse somewhere on the part of Pakistan. There are scanners on their side. It should have been detected. We cannot comment right now,” said Dipak Kumar Gupta, Commissioner, Customs, Amritsar. According to the statement, After the bust, searches were conducted at various places in Amritsar. “The mastermind of this smuggling racket based in Handwara (J&K) has been apprehended with the help of J&K Police. Further investigation is under progress,” the press note said. Dipak Kumar Gupta, Commissioner, Customs, Amritsar, added: “Salt is not a commodity affected much by weather. So often it is unloaded into open space. These salt bags along with heroin bags were unloaded on June 26 and remained under open sky till June 29.”