Everchanging face of kuruvis

The offer was irresistible: a quick trip to Thailand with a promised payment of Rs40,000 to retrieve a ‘dairy consignment’. An autorickshaw driver in Chennai, whose monthly earnings barely matched that sum, thought the offer would change his life. It, indeed, did — but for the worse. From being an auto driver, he is now a narco-criminal. Yes, the ‘dairy consignment’ turned out to be hydroponic ganja , and now he is in jail facing charges under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, after being caught by the air customs.

The ordeal began with a routine Rs300 fare when the auto driver, name withheld by customs officials, picked up a passenger from Chennai Central station for a ride to T Nagar. The man, claiming to be in the lucrative dairy export business, appeared sympathetic and asked the driver about his financial hardships and family. Soon, the relationship deepened. The passenger promised him money and an offer to travel abroad.

With tickets, a visa, and accommodations arranged, the auto driver was flown to Thailand with cash for expenses. His task, he believed, was to collect dairy goods. When he returned with ‘goods’ to Chennai, customs officials at the airport intercepted him. They found hydroponic ganja (marijuana) in his trolley bag. He then realised that the friendly passenger, who took advantage of his financial desperation, had turned him into an unwitting drug mule , locally known as kuruvi.


The auto driver’s story isn’t new. In 2025, Chennai Customs and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) intercepted more than 10 hydroponic weed smugglers, including couples. Last year, the DRI busted a racket where senior citizens were tricked into smuggling after being told they had won a ‘lottery’, which required overseas travel.

Customs officials at Chennai airport warn that the rings are now recruiting unsuspecting people — auto drivers, college students and senior citizens — as mules to hoodwink the customs database comprising profiles of the professional courier networks that cartels traditionally relied upon. “Smugglers lure the vulnerable with promises of overseas trips. We seized 12kg of hydroponic ganja from two passengers, one of whom was deceived into carrying a 6kg consignment,” said a senior official.

The trade is highly profitable. Hydroponic ganja, priced between Rs3 lakh and Rs4 lakh a kg in Thailand or Malaysia, is sold for Rs40 lakh in the black market in India. “Even after spending up to Rs2 lakh on tickets, accommodation, and payments to the carriers, smugglers secure a profit of more than Rs30 lakh a kg,” an official said. The smuggling ring, operated by cartels based in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, brings contraband from Thailand and Malaysia. Most of the hydroponic weed arriving in Chennai is eventually destined for use as a party drug in metropolitan centres such as Bengaluru.

Enforcement agencies are on their toes as cartels switch their operations every two months and rely on untraceable, app-based communication. “All critical communication is managed through international WhatsApp numbers. Consignments are delivered abroad via local courier applications. This ensures the real leaders remain hidden and untraceable,” an official said.

Indian officials have warned ordinary citizens being recruited as drug mules of severe personal cost. “Under the NDPS Act , judicial custody of at least 14 days is mandatory,” said Narcotics Control Bureau, Chennai zone, director P Aravindhan. The trend of using vulnerable, unsuspecting individuals has made enforcement significantly harder. Meanwhile, the revenue department is reportedly considering an overhaul of the NDPS Act to differentiate hydroponic weed from regular marijuana and to introduce even more stringent penalties for its smuggling.