PATNA: At least 24 people died allegedly after consuming toxic liquor in different villages of Chhapra in Bihar’s Saran district on Wednesday. One of them died at the district hospital during treatment while some others are believed to be undergoing treatment in private. The police have taken his body into their custody.
An official said his body will be sent for post-mortem to ascertain the cause of his death.
Though the victims’ relatives claim their deaths are due to toxic liquor, the authorities are yet to confirm this.
Of the estimated five billion litres of alcohol drunk every year in the country, around 40 percent is illegally produced, according to the International Spirits and Wine Association of India.
Illicit liquor is often spiked with methanol to increase its potency. If ingested, methanol can cause blindness, liver damage and death.
In July, 42 people died in the western state of Gujarat after drinking bootleg booze.
And last year, about 100 people died in the northern state of Punjab in a similar incident.
