MADURAI: Large quantities of beedi leaves were seized along the shoreline at Vivekananda Colony near Thalamuthu Nagar in Thoothukudi in the early hours of Tuesday.

Acting on a tip-off, the ‘Q’ Branch police, led by Inspector Vijaya Anitha, rushed to the shoreline and foiled the smuggling bid before seizing beedi leaves stuffed in 40 bags.

Earlier, the team spotted a suspicious unregistered fibre boat, which remained anchored in shallow waters. After checking the boat, the police found beedi leaves inside and seized them.

Each of the seized bag weighed 30 kg of beedi leaves. After the seizure, the boat and a bike used for transporting the contraband were also seized.

Investigations revealed that the beedi leaves were about to be smuggled to Sri Lanka. All those seized materials were handed over to the Customs department for further investigation, sources said.