28 Dead, 60 Fall Sick in India from Drinking Spiked Alcohol

At least 28 people have died and 60 others became ill from drinking altered liquor in western India, according to officials on Tuesday.

Senior government official Mukesh Parmar said the deaths occurred in Ahmedabad and Botad districts of Gujarat state, where manufacturing, sale, and consumption of alcohol are prohibited.

It was not immediately known what chemical was used to alter the liquor.

Press Trust of India mentioned that police in the area have detained people who they believe are bootleggers that were involved in the selling of the spiked alcohol.

People dying after drinking illegally brewed alcohol is commonplace in India, where it is often laced with chemicals such as pesticides and sold at a low cost, according to the AP.

Spiked liquor has turned into a very profitable industry across India where smugglers pay no taxes and sell huge amounts of their products to the poor at cheap prices.

At least 120 people died in 2020 after drinking tainted alcohol in the country's northern Punjab state.