Toxic alcohol deaths jump to 156: police

At least 45 more workers have died in northeastern India after drinking toxic liquor, police said yesterday, taking the death toll from the latest mass alcohol poisoning beyond 156. The deaths in Assam state came less than two weeks after tainted liquor killed about 100 people in the northern states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. In addition to the latest toll, at least 200 more people were still hospitalised across Assam.

“The death toll has reached 156 in Golaghat and Jorhat districts,” Mukesh Agarwala, additional director general of state police, said yesterday. “A total of ten people have been arrested. We have sent the samples of the liquor... to a forensic laboratory. The report is awaited,” he added. Police said people started falling sick after consuming a batch of illegally produced liquor late Thursday. The victims, who include many women, worked at local tea estates in the region.

Doctors said those rushed to hospital in a critical condition were suffering from severe vomiting, extreme chest pain and breathlessness. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has ordered an inquiry into the deaths. Apart from the arrests, two excise department officials were suspended for failing to take adequate precautions over the sale of the alcohol.