The sale is prohibited by law in India, as the sperm whale is an endangered species
A group of fishermen from Vizhinjam near here has found, Ambergris or vomit of whale worth Rs 28 crore and handed it over to the authorities.
The fishermen found the ambergris weighing 28.400 kg in the sea and brought it to shore on Friday evening and handed it over to the coastal police.
"They handed us over the ambergris. We informed the Forest department and they received it from us," Coastal police told PTI on Saturday.
The Forest department has taken the ambergris to Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB) in the city to confirm it.
Sources said one kg of ambergris, which is used to make perfumes, costs around Rs one crore in the international market.
However, the sale is prohibited by law in India, as the sperm whale is an endangered species that is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)