A couple of Indian Coast Guard hovercraft and a fast interceptor boat chased down a fishing boat that was smuggling into the city a garments consignment, a coast guard officer said on Monday.

The coast guard had received information from the customs department that a fishing boat would be used to smuggle into the city a large consignment of clothes from Bangladesh, the officer said.

Coast guard officers started monitoring the movement of all vessels along the coast near Calcutta and in the Hooghly channel. On Monday, they spotted a fishing boat moving suspiciously along the Hooghly channel off Geonkhali near Haldia.

Two hovercraft and a fast interceptor boat were pressed into service. The crew of the fishing boat beached the boat near Diamond Harbour and fled, the officer said.

The clothes have tags similar to well-known brands, a customs official said.