NE LEGAL BUREAU
MUMBAI, SEPT 14
The Karachi–Jebel Ali–India trail has come under the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI)’s scanner, with the agency seizing more than 362 metric tonnes of Pakistan-origin dry dates in a major crackdown on attempts to circumvent India’s prohibition on direct and indirect imports from Pakistan.
👉 DRI seizes more than 362 MT Pakistan-origin dry dates under ‘Operation Deep Manifest’
Read more ➡️ https://t.co/niL4Zipxh3#DRIAtWork pic.twitter.com/F0wxuC3inn
— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinIndia) September 14, 2026
Acting on specific intelligence, DRI officers intercepted 13 containers of dry dates imported by a Mumbai-based firm at CFS Ambad, Nashik. The consignments had arrived from Jebel Ali, UAE, while the import documents declared the UAE as the country of origin.
- 13 containers intercepted in Nashik after UAE declared as country of origin in import documents
- DRI uncovers alleged transshipment trail from Karachi to Jebel Ali before consignments headed for India
- Operation Deep Manifest targets attempts to bypass India’s ban on direct and indirect imports from Pakistan
- Probe focuses on concealment of origin, misdeclaration and documentation manipulation in third-country routing
Preliminary investigation, however, revealed what DRI described as a carefully orchestrated transshipment arrangement allegedly designed to conceal the Pakistan origin of the goods.
Karachi cargo changes containers at Jebel Ali
According to the investigation, the dry dates were initially shipped from Karachi Port, Pakistan, to Jebel Ali Port, UAE, in one set of containers aboard one vessel.
At Jebel Ali, the consignments were allegedly merely transshipped into another set of containers and loaded onto a different vessel for onward movement to India. The investigation has also found the involvement of entities operated by Pakistani nationals in the onward shipment.
The movement pattern and documentation have come under scrutiny as DRI investigates whether the third-country routing was intended to create the appearance of UAE origin and thereby bypass India’s import prohibition.
‘Operation Deep Manifest’ tracks third-country routes
The seizure comes against the backdrop of the Government’s decision, following the Pahalgam terror attack, to prohibit the direct or indirect import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan in the interest of national security.
The prohibition came into effect on May 2, 2025, through DGFT Notification No. 06/2025-26 dated May 2, 2025.
Under ‘Operation Deep Manifest’, DRI has been identifying, intercepting and seizing Pakistan-origin goods allegedly being routed into India through third countries in an attempt to circumvent the prohibition.
Supply-chain integrity under DRI lens
The latest seizure underscores the agency’s focus on sophisticated methods allegedly used to evade trade restrictions, including misdeclaration, transshipment and manipulation of import documentation.
The investigation is significant not merely for the quantity seized but for the alleged mechanism involved: goods originating in Pakistan were routed through a third country before being presented for Indian import with a different declared country of origin.
The action signals DRI’s continued resolve to identify, disrupt and dismantle networks attempting to exploit international supply-chain routes to defeat India’s trade prohibitions, while safeguarding national security and the integrity of the country’s import and logistics ecosystem.
