Tea Tribe Woes: Death toll in Assam hooch tragedy rises to 185

Guwahati, February 25, 2019:

The death toll in the hooch tragedy that has stricken the Upper Assam districts of Jorhat and Golaghat has risen to 185. The tea plantation community of Assam has been affected most by the incident and despite the promise of Rs. 2 lakh in grant money by the Government, it can be argued that financial remuneration alone cannot compensate for the void created in the lives of the people related to the deceased.

The tea tribe community, which has long been seeking a pathway to development and has been largely overlooked by the Government, are known to drown their sorrows in bucketfuls of cheap liquor. And now, it seems, that too will be taken away from them as the Government continues its crackdown against the bootleg liquor racket in the state. In

It is to be mentioned that it is the deadliest bootleg-liquor related incident in India and the victims are mostly the tea plantation workers in the state. It is believed that the plantation workers drank the liquor laced with methyl alcohol which directly affects the central nervous system.

Meanwhile, the Excise Department has started a crackdown on the illicit liquor trade in the state and thousands of liters of ‘sulai’ are being destroyed all across the state. On the other hand, opposition leaders like former Assam CM Tarun Gogoi have alleged that the BJP administration is directly responsible for the deaths as the illegal hooch trade is a source of revenue for the Excise Department.

It is to be mentioned that poisoning from toxic liquor claims over a thousand lives in India each year.