Indian Bootleg Liquor Death Toll Rises to 107

Friday, July 10, 2009 at 1:13 pm

NEW DELHI: The death toll from a case of mass poisoning involving home-brewed alcohol in the western Indian state of Gujarat rose to 107 on Friday, police said. The number of deaths was up from the 86 reported as of Thursday.

Senior police officer Abhay Chudasama told AFP that 194 other people were being treated in hospital in the state’s largest city Ahmedabad after drinking the contaminated liquor at a party on Sunday. Selling or consuming alcohol is a criminal offence in Gujarat, India’s only dry state and the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi.

Deaths from cheap alcohol are common in India and last year nearly 170 people died after drinking a same batch of toxic liquor in southern India.

The Press Trust of India reported that more than 800 bootleggers have been arrested in a recent crackdown on illegal brewers.