14 Indians die after drinking home-brew alcohol

At least 14 people have died after drinking illegal home-brew alcohol sold at unauthorised shops in India’s remote north-east, police said today.

The death toll was likely to rise because 61 others were hospitalised after drinking the noxious brew last night in Tezpur, a town 110 miles north of Gauhati, the capital of Assam state, police officer L. Bora said.

Many of those hospitalised were in critical condition, a doctor said.

The deaths triggered violence, with angry residents attacking government offices and torching half a dozen motorbikes and some shops in the area, Bora said.

The residents also tried to burn down the state excise tax office which regulates the alcohol trade.

Bora said samples of the home-brew alcohol have been sent to a lab for tests.

Such incidents are common in rural India, where cheap, home-made brew is sometimes mixed with methyl alcohol, which can cause blindness or death. The victims are usually poor people who cannot afford more expensive alcohol.