Thane, Dec 18 (PTI) Ambergris, commonly called whale vomit or grey amber, worth Rs 1 crore was seized from two persons on Ghodbunder Road in Thane city, police said on Saturday.

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Acting on a tip off, Sushant Behra (32), a property agent from Cuttack in Odisha, and Manoj Sharma (40) from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, were held on Friday evening with ambergris worth Rs 1 crore, said Senior Inspector Anil Honrao of Thane police's property cell.

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A case under Wildlife Protection Act and IPC provisions has been registered at Kasarwadavali police station, he added.

Ambergris, created by the bile duct of the sperm whale, is often called "floating gold" due to the immense price it fetches in the international market for its use in luxury perfumes.

The sperm whale is a protected species under Schedule 2 of the Wildlife Protection Act in India.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)