[caption id="attachment_66237" align="aligncenter" width="200"] Bootleg liquor kills dozens in India, Laced With Pesticides[/caption]Death Toll Mounts from Pesticide Laden Liquor in India

Lucknow, India - the death toll in this metropolis of 4.8 million residents has reached 42 in the past three days as health officials scramble to inform the public of bad batch of homemade liquor laced with pesticide.

Currently, forty people are hospitalized after ingesting the toxic spirit. The ten most recent deaths were from people being treated at local hospitals for poisoning after drinking the special brew. The brew was made illegally by bootleggers in preparation for the Dussehra festival where Hindus celebrate the victory of Lord Rama over the demon king with ten arms.

According to Al Jazeera, the victims purchased the alcohol in pouches from a shop and started falling ill immediately upon consuming it. The shopkeeper who sold the liquor was arrested, though the shopkeeper's son also died from drinking the liquor.

Police have thus far arrested 32 of the bootleggers. Sadly, the fact that the liquor is tainted with pesticide isn't a chance occurrence. Nor is it an act of terrorism. The poor are not able to afford state licensed alcohol so they purchase the bootleg versions which are much cheaper. How do the bootleggers give their alcohol its potency? They do so by adding pesticides to the mix. Deaths occur annually in India due to such toxic ingredients in the alcohol, but this time around someone added something especially potent. In 2008, 90 people died in New Delhi from pesticide tainted alcohol.

On The Web:
Toxic Bootleg Liquor Kills Dozens In India
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/20/toxic-bootleg-liquor-kills-india-deaths_n_4131467.html