Daily Lessons from Life 09 July 2009

"Bootleg alcohol kills 71 in India
Six police officers suspended for failing to crack down on illegal distilleries. -Thu, Jul 09, 2009 AFP

NEW DELHI (AFP) - The death toll from a case of mass poisoning involving home-brewed alcohol in the western Indian state of Gujarat jumped to 71, police said.


The number of deaths rose from 25 on Wednesday. A police officer in the state's largest city Ahmedabad told AFP that another five people were seriously ill in hospital after consuming the contaminated liquor at a party on Sunday.

The Press Trust of India reported six police officers in the city had been suspended and transferred for failing to crack down on illegal distilleries.

The state's home minister on Wednesday announced an inquiry into the easy availability of bootleg liquor in the region. Selling and consuming alcohol is a criminal offence in Gujarat, India's only dry state and the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi.

Deaths from cheap alcohol are common in India and last year nearly 170 people died after drinking the same batch of toxic liquor in southern India."

Needless deaths. Strange that it goes on year after year. Adults too!!

Lessons for me are:

1. strange things human being do! When you banned them from doing or drinking or eating something, the more they will try to do that! Forbidden fruits seemed to taste better;

2. the policemen should be punished as they were not performing their duties and doing their jobs! It is irrelevant if they too like the drink the stuff that killed the drinkers! They did not do their jobs!;

3. when you have a statistician doing the number of 170 deaths annually over the population of that Indian state, it is probably in the 0.000000 range. The truth is any death in such a situation is simply unacceptable. It could have been avoided as the brewers could be better trained, the materials better prepared, etc. Bootleg alcohol can be done properly. If not, the reverse is true, that the people and the state will continue to accept that illegal distilleries will be around and there will be accidental deaths due to sub-quality bootleg alcohol being consumed!

Human being needs to make decision for themselves. Such tragedies can be avoided if people decide not to drink alcohol or the 'dry state' be changed or those who like to drink move out of the 'dry state'! Better than death by accident!!