New Delhi: At least 18 people have died in Maharashtra after consuming methanol-laced liquor in the last two days. While 13 died in Pimpri Chinchwad’s Phugewadi and Dapodi, five died in Pune’s Hadapsar and Kalepadal after allegedly consuming the liquor.
Over a decade ago, Maharashtra had a notorious record of the highest deaths due to the consumption of spurious alcohol. The state recorded 359 deaths in 2014. The next year, the Mumbai hooch tragedy claimed 102 lives.
Dozens of Indians die every year after consuming methanol-laced alcohol. When ingested, toxic bootleg liquor causes severe organ damage, blindness, coma, and ultimately, death.
Here are the worst hooch tragedies reported in India in the last 10 years.
1. Punjab, 2020
Approximately 121 to 135 people across the Tarn Taran, Amritsar, and Gurdaspur districts of Punjab died after consuming methanol-laced liquor during the Covid-19 lockdown in WHICH MONTH. State authorities made around 40 to 50 arrests in the weeks following the outbreak. Multiple excise and police officials in Punjab were suspended.
2. Assam, 2019
One of India’s worst alcohol poisoning events, the Assam hooch tragedy claimed at least 158 lives in XX month. Over 300 were admitted at the Jorhat Medical College and Hospital and the Golaghat Civil Hospital. The victims were predominantly tea garden workers in the Golaghat and Jorhat districts who consumed toxic liquor locally known as sulai. The police arrested over 22 people in connection with the case.
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3. Tamil Nadu, 2024
At least 65 individuals died after consuming illicit bootleg liquor in the Kallakurichi district in MONTH. Over 130 were admitted to government hospitals. Former chief minister MK Stalin constituted a commission headed by Justice B Gokuldas, and four persons were arrested. The accused allegedly sold the concoction in packets through a local vendor.
4. Bihar, 2022
Alcohol poisoning claimed the lives of 73 people in the Saran district in December 2022. It was the highest death toll in Bihar since the state banned liquor in 2016. Many of the victims reportedly hesitated to seek help as they feared they would be punished for their violation of the liquor prohibition.
5. Uttarakhand & Uttar Pradesh, 2019
At least 99 people from Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh lost their lives in a series of mass alcohol poisonings in XX months in 2019. The tragedy began at a mourning ritual in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar, where many consumed tainted liquor, and transported it back to the adjoining Saharanpur and Kushinagar districts in Uttar Pradesh.