14 Dead, 6 Hospitalised After Drinking Contaminated Liquor in Northern India

At least 14 people have died and six others are receiving treatment in hospitals after consuming toxic liquor in northern India, officials confirmed on Tuesday. The tragic incident, which occurred in five villages around 19 kilometres (12 miles) from the city of Amritsar in Punjab State, has sparked a major police crackdown on illegal alcohol distribution networks.

A Senior Police Officer, Maninder Singh, revealed that seven suspects have been arrested in connection with the incident. “The arrested persons were said to have supplied the liquor to five villages,” Singh stated, noting that a wide-ranging investigation has begun to dismantle the illicit supply chain.

In response to the incident, the local government has intensified efforts to prevent further casualties. “We’ve deployed medics to the villages to check on people who drank the contaminated liquor,” said Sakshi Sawhney, a senior government official in Amritsar. “Those showing symptoms are being shifted to hospitals to ensure the death toll doesn’t rise,” he added.

Although the exact substances responsible for the deaths have not been disclosed, authorities suspect that harmful and unregulated ingredients may have been used in the locally produced brew.

Deaths from the consumption of spurious liquor are sadly common in India, particularly in rural communities where cheaper, unregulated alcohol is widely consumed despite the dangers.

The latest incident has reignited calls for stricter enforcement against the production and distribution of illicit liquor, as well as for public education on the risks associated with its consumption.