Death toll rises to 8 in spurious liquor case in Odisha

Three more persons died after allegedly consuming spurious liquor in Bhadrak district, taking the death toll in the tragedy to eight, officials said on Wednesday.

Five people died and 28 others fell ill on Tuesday after allegedly consuming spurious liquor during a post-election feast in the Tihidi area of the district.

The death toll rose to eight after three more persons were taken to the district headquarters hospital here late on Tuesday night and all of them died before reaching the hospital, Additional District Medical Officer (ADMO) P K Khuntia said.

"We have received the bodies. Their relatives said the deceased had also consumed liquor," the ADMO said.

The exact reason of the deaths will be ascertained once the post-mortem reports were available, he added.

Two persons were detained in connection with the incident and efforts were on to nab those involved in selling spurious liquor, Inspector-in-charge of the Tihidi police station Prabhansu Mishra said.

The tragedy struck late Monday night, hours after polling for the fourth and final phases of the simultaneous Lok Sabha and state Assembly elections were over. The locals claimed that the victims had bought the liquor on Monday with the money given to them by political parties before the polls.

The police said the entire episode was being probed.

Some residents of Daulatapur and another village under the jurisdiction of the Tihidi police station had bought the liquor from a local market, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Umakanta Moharana said.

Excise Secretary Nikunja Dhal said a joint investigation was being conducted by the revenue, health, excise and police departments.

"We are taking the matter seriously as the incident took place on polling day," he said.

Excise Commissioner Upendra S Punia, who visited the area on Tuesday, said a forensic team had collected samples for tests.

The ADMO said the villagers complained of nausea, stomach ache and loss of eyesight after consuming the liquor on Monday night.

Many of those who were admitted to the hospital here had been discharged, he said.

The district administration had ordered an inquiry to ascertain the cause of deaths and the circumstances that led to the tragedy, a senior official said.

Punia said a clear picture would emerge after the samples collected from the area were tested and the post-mortem reports of the deceased were available.