Killer moonshine
December 15, 2011
The hospitals of West Bengal have been swamped by day laborers and rickshaw drivers who started falling ill on Tuesday. They apparently drank adulterated alcohol that was bought at different illegal shops in the district of South 24 Parganas, some 50 kilometers away from the state capital Kolkata.
Half-conscious patients were being treated on the floor because the overcrowded hospitals did not have enough free beds. Every few minutes, a new ambulance arrived with new patients complaining of burning chest and stomach pains.
"The death toll has touched 102," the district magistrate of 24-Parganas told AFP by telephone. Other reports said at least 107 had died.
Zamir Sardar told Reuters his 32-year-old uncle, Jahangir, a leather cutter, had passed away on Thursday after drinking alcohol late Wednesday afternoon.
Chemicals raise alcohol content
Methanol, which is often used as anti-freeze or fuel, has reportedly been found in the organs of 20 of the dead victims examined by doctors.
Small quantities of chemicals are sometimes added to moonshine to increase the alcohol content, but this can cause blindness or liver damage. In 2009, over 100 people died of a toxic brew.
Bootleg liquor is widely available all over India and is often drunk by those too poor to buy branded alcohol from licensed shops. It usually costs a third of the price of legal alcohol.
"Enforcement is very weak," Johnson Edayaranmulah from the Indian Alcohol Policy Alliance told AFP. "There is an unholy nexus between the authorities - police, excise, politicians - and the bootleggers."
He said that if methanol was the cause of illness this time those producing the alcohol might have mistaken it for ethanol, which is less toxic.
Promises of strong action
Four people have already been arrested over the deaths, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launching an inquiry and vowing to take action. She said the families of victims would each receive compensation of 200,000 rupees (ca. 4,100 US dollars).
"I want to take strong action against those manufacturing and selling illegal liquor," Banerjee told regional media.
Meanwhile, furious villagers have taken to the streets to protest, even ransacking the illegal alcohol shops.
Author: Anne Thomas (Reuters, AFP, AP)
Editor: Sarah Berning