Palakkad: A pick-up van carrying more than 100 boxes of explosives was seized in Kerala’s Palakkad area, police said on Thursday.

An officer of the Palakkad Town South police station confirmed that over 100 boxes of gelatin sticks (estimated at around 4,000 to 18,000 sticks depending on final count) and more than 20 boxes of detonators were found in the vehicle.

The contraband had been meticulously concealed under a large consignment of watermelons to evade detection.

Interception and High-Speed Chase

The seizure took place late on Wednesday night (February 4) as state authorities stepped up security measures across Kerala ahead of the upcoming 2026 Assembly elections. According to the officer, the vehicle was intercepted during a routine inspection following specific intelligence that large quantities of explosives were being illegally smuggled into the state.

When signaled to stop, the driver—identified as Senthil Kumar, a native of Tamil Nadu—allegedly attempted to flee. Police successfully chased down the vehicle and took him into custody.

Interstate Smuggling and Quarrying Link

During preliminary interrogation, the driver revealed that he had loaded the explosives in Coimbatore and was transporting them to a quarry in Thrissur. While the initial police assumption is that the materials were intended for quarrying work, central and state agencies, including the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), are investigating potential deeper security implications or wider organized networks.

Crackdown on Illegal Explosives Trade

In a statement regarding the broader context of explosive sales in the region, the police highlighted the role of illegal monopolies:

“We are looking into it. There are only a few agencies that have licences to sell these explosives. It’s a monopoly in most areas where high prices are charged, so people without a licence sell this for cheap prices secretly. At first glance, this is what it looks like.”

A case under the Explosive Substances Act is being registered by the Palakkad Police as the seizure process concludes. Forensic and ballistic experts are expected to examine the haul to determine its exact composition.