New Delhi (Sputnik) — At least 43 persons have died in northern India in the last four days after consuming spurious liquor. In the latest incident, five deaths were reported Friday morning in Umahi village of Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh. The spate of deaths due to illicit liquor consumption started early this week in the Uttar Pradesh state, as well as the adjoining Uttarakhand state.
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On Thursday, 16 deaths were reported in another village of Saharanpur and 12 deaths in the Haridwar district of adjoining state Uttarakhand. Three days ago, 10 people were killed in a similar tragedy in Uttar Pradesh's Kushinagar. Initial investigations have indicated that most of the victims had consumed liquor from two different units of the same source, according to News18.
"We have suspended 13 employees of the enforcement team for negligence", the deputy excise commissioner was quoted as saying by the local media.
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The Uttar Pradesh government has also ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident.
