Five people died and several others were hospitalised after consuming spurious liquor in Bihar's Siwan and Saran districts.
Siwan District Magistrate Mukul Kumar Gupta said people, exhibiting symptoms like vomiting, headache, and stomach pain in Kaudia Vaisy Tola Village on Tuesday evening, were rushed to the Primary Health Centre in Bhagwanpur for treatment.
"As their condition worsened, they were rushed to Sadar Hospital in Siwan, with some later being referred to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) for advanced care," Gupta said.
"During the treatment, four persons lost their lives and seven others are undergoing treatment in Sadar Hospital Siwan and PMCH Patna," Gupta said.
The deceased have been identified as Arvind Singh (40) and Ramendra Singh (30) from Kaudia Vaisy Tola, Santosh Sahani (35) and Munna (32) from Madhav Pokhara village.
Villagers claim that number of casualties was higher than confirmed by the district administration.
They also claimed that the victims consumed spurious liquor on Tuesday evening and symptoms began around 9 p.m.
While the families of the victims claim the illness stemmed from consuming spurious liquor, District Magistrate Gupta emphasised that the exact cause of death will only be determined after a detailed post-mortem.
Authorities are currently investigating the situation to confirm the cause of the incident.
In response to the alarming situation in Siwan, the District Magistrate has deployed ambulances to the affected villages to transport any additional individuals who may report symptoms of illness after consuming the spurious liquor.
This precautionary measure is aimed to ensure that those affected receive immediate medical attention.
In Saran district, one person died and two others fell critically ill in Ibrahimpur village after consuming spurious liquor on Tuesday evening.
The deceased has been identified as Islamuddin, son of Latif Mian, while two others, Shamshad Ansari and Mumtaz Ansari, were critical. These two have been admitted to Sadar Hospital Chhapra for treatment.
Rakesh Kumar, ASP of Chhapra (HQ) said, "We have received information about three persons who consumed a drink on Tuesday. They were admitted to Sadar Hospital Chhapra and one of them died during the treatment. We are investigating the incident."
Both incidents, in Siwan and Saran, are currently under investigation as authorities work to determine the exact cause of the deaths, with medical tests and postmortem reports awaited to clarify whether the hooch is directly responsible for the incident.
(With inputs from IANS)
