Sri Lanka will send back 62 containers, containing illegally imported turmeric, to India, as per a report on ColomboPage. 

Currently, the import of turmeric is completely banned in Sri Lanka. The containers contained around one million kg of turmeric and the Sri Lankan customs has also decided to impose a fine on the re-exported container,  informed Sunil Jayaratne, the spokesperson of Sri Lankan customs. 

He also said another 10 tons of confiscated turmeric will be transferred to Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Corporations and a proposal for the same has already been sent to the Ministry of Finance.

Earlier on Friday night, Sri Lankan Navy, in a special operation,  arrested five Indian nationals who were trying to smuggle 1,373 kg of dry turmeric using dhows in the sea. The operation was conducted by the North-Western Novel Command in seas off the Kudiramalai point near Puttalam. 

The Navy believed the smuggling was part of organized racketeering who might have tried to load the consignment onto a Sri Lanka vessel. Due to COVID concern, the arrested Indian Nationals were repatriated to India, informed the Navy.