The death toll from toxic illegal alcohol in Tamil Nadu, India, has risen to 53, as more victims succumbed in hospitals. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin reported that the locally brewed arrack, laced with methanol, killed 37 people within hours on Tuesday. Over 100 people were hospitalized, many too ill to be saved. An AFP photographer in Kallakurichi, the hardest-hit district, described smoke from funeral pyres darkening the sky and wailing relatives mourning the dead.
Concern
Every year, hundreds in India die from consuming cheap, illicit alcohol from backstreet distilleries. This incident is one of the deadliest in recent years. Methanol, often added to increase the liquor’s potency, can cause blindness, liver damage, and death.
The Indian Express reported local councillor Palraj explaining that poor laborers in Kallakurichi regularly bought the illicit liquor in plastic bags for 60 rupees ($0.70) to drink before work. Many suffered blindness or died quickly, collapsing in the street. Shankar, a rickshaw driver from a street where 23 people died, said men work just to drink while women manage the household.
M.S. Prasanth, the top government official in Kallakurichi, confirmed 53 deaths as of Saturday, according to the Press Trust of India (PTI). Other media sources reported the toll as high as 56, but there was no immediate confirmation from authorities.
Political rivals are blaming each other for the death tragedy. Prasanth noted that seven people had been arrested in connection with the incident. Although Tamil Nadu is not a dry state, black-market liquor is cheaper than legal alcohol.
The Indian Express also spoke to Kolanji, a domestic helper whose husband encountered death after drinking the tainted alcohol. She said people resort to moonshine because they can’t afford government shop prices, buying it early in the morning. Resident M. Murugesan also told The Times of India that most victims were daily wage workers who were the breadwinners for their families, now left struggling to survive. SEE
Illegal alcohol and death remains a major issue in India. Prohibition in various regions fuels a black market for potent and often lethal moonshine. Past incidents include 27 deaths in Bihar last year and 42 in Gujarat in 2022 due to toxic alcohol. Read Also
