Bhubaneswar: The customs' air intelligence wing seized 15 gold bars weighing 1,143 grams from two passengers at Biju Patnaik International Airport here on Wednesday night.

This is the second such seizure in the past 48 hours and the sixth since the airport had started international operations last April.

A customs sleuth said the gold bars were recovered from two passengers from Punjab after they arrived on an AirAsia flight from Bangkok. "The passengers had wrapped the bars with black adhesive and concealed those in their rectum. The value of the gold is Rs 34.9 lakh. We are interrogating them to ascertain where from they have got it," said a customs sleuth.

On Tuesday, customs sleuths recovered 378 grams of gold from two passengers from Thane. "This is the fourth such incident in March," he said. Sources said well-organised rackets in Bangkok targeted carriers to carry the gold with the promise of hefty sums. "They adopt several methods to conceal the metal. Sometimes, it is also smuggled in shoes and luggage," said an official.

The customs has seized more than 4.4kg of gold from passengers at the airport since last April. Though the airport got international tag in October 2010, direct international flights only launched last April.

Airport officials said the smugglers targeted airports that were new on the international circuit. "The carriers often take the risk in the hope of sneaking through security at these airports. They should understand that customs officials are alert at airports starting international operations," said the official.

Contraband seized

Police's Quick Action Team on Thursday seized brown sugar weighing 50 grams and 16kg ganja from a private vehicle near Kandarpur in Cuttack. The police said the contraband was seized while it was being transported to Bhubaneswar from Jagatsinghpur. The cops also arrested three accused and are interrogating them for further information.