Vadodara Police arrested six people possessing whale vomit, mobiles and car worth Rs 1.58 crore.
The arrests were made from near city Bill Canal Road.
The area was raided following a tip off. The raid was conducted by Vadodara Zone 2 LCB, Forest Department and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) officials.
The police seized illegal whale vomit (Ambergris) worth ₹1.58 crore, six mobile phones and a car, bringing the total worth of seized valuables to ₹1.65 crore.
Those arrested are: Suresh Chavda, Gautam Vasava, Dipak Rabari, Siddharth alias Sunny Bharwad, Raju alias Sanjay Bharwad and Suraj Singh Kaboj.
Ambergris is a rare, waxy substance produced in the intestines of sperm whales, which are protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act. It forms when the whale’s digestive system coats sharp objects (like squid beaks) in a protective fatty material.
Rather than being actual whale vomit, ambergris is occasionally expelled through the whale’s faeces and floats in the ocean, where it hardens over time.
As it is so rare and has a distinct musky smell, it can sell for tens of thousands of dollars per kilogram and is used in luxury perfumes and traditional medicine.
Even if ambergris is collected from the ocean and not taken from a killed whale, the law treats it as a wildlife product, and its trade is considered illegal. The trade incentivises illegal hunting or exploitation of whales.
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