DRI seizes 3,00,000 electronic cigarettes/vapes worth Rs. 120 crore in a major crackdown on e-cigarette smuggling racket across Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi and West Bengal

• Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), the apex anti-smuggling agency under CBIC, Ministry of Finance, busted a multi-state e-cigarette smuggling racket in May 2026, seizing ~3,00,000 vapes worth ₹120 crore across Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi and West Bengal.
• Case illustrates enforcement of the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act (PECA), 2019 read with Customs Act, 1962 — a recurring theme in GS-II (governance/health) and GS-III (security/economy).