Hooch tragedy: Eight more die in two other Bihar districts

Following the hooch tragedy in dry Bihar that killed 30 people in Saran district, eight more people died allegedly after consuming some shady liquor in two other districts, officials said on Saturday. Six people were killed in the Siwan district, which borders Saran, and two more were killed in Begusarai.

According to unconfirmed reports, up to 60 people died in Saran district after drinking illicitly brewed country liquor. Even the official death toll of 30 is the highest since Bihar went dry over six years ago.

Sub-Divisional Magistrate Sanjay Kumar said the administration has launched an investigation into the six deaths that have occurred in the Bhagwanpur division of Siwan district since Thursday.


"We are also carrying searches in the area to nab those who indulge in the sale and purchase of liquor," Kumar said.

In relation to the Begusari incident, Deputy Superintendent of Police Chandramohan Prasad told reporters that two youths died on Friday after consuming "some poisonous chemical" in Teghra division.

"We have sent bodies for post-mortem examination. Investigations are on," he said.

The Nitish Kumar government banned the sale and consumption of alcohol in Bihar in April 2016. Nonetheless, despite the ongoing crackdown on bootleggers, liquor smuggling continues unabated in the state.

The police recovered several cartons of liquor from a truck in the Sadar police station area of Muzaffarpur district early Saturday. The cartons were concealed beneath wooden planks. Four people died in Brahmsthan village in Siwan, which shares a border with Saran, on Friday, and another person died in Sondhani village on Thursday. On Friday, another resident of the Saran district died in Siwan.

Vijay Kumar Sinha, the Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, claimed inside the Assembly on Friday that the hooch tragedy had "claimed more than 100 lives." Sinha had visited the affected Mashrak block in Saran on Thursday.

According to Saran District Magistrate Rajesh Meena, the deaths were "caused by suspected consumption of spurious liquor," which will be confirmed after the deceased's viscera are examined at forensic labs.

On Friday, the National Human Rights Commission served notices on the Bihar government and the state's police chief in connection with the Saran hooch tragedy.