https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Karnataka_alcohol_poisoningsKarnataka alcohol poisonings - Revision history2026-08-01T03:05:25ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Karnataka_alcohol_poisonings&diff=466695&oldid=prevLeonorColangelo at 16:58, 30 July 20252025-07-30T16:58:35Z<p></p>
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'''Karnataka liquor deaths''' are deaths in [[Karnataka]] state in [[India]] in 1981 by consuming illegal [[liquor]]. In July 1981 about 308 people died in [[Bangalore]] by illicit liquor.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/07/10/world/deaths-from-illegal-liquor-rise-to-308-in-southern-india.html |title=Deaths From Illegal Liquor Rise to 308 in Southern India |date=10 July 1981 |work=[[The New York Times]] |accessdate=5 July 2010}}</ref> Adulteration of cheap liquor by [[methyl alcohol]] resulted in deaths.<br />
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Availability of cheap spurious alcohol (known as [[Moonshine|hooch]]) is a problem around the [[Tannery Road]] area of the [[Bangalore Cantonment]], with many dwellers getting [[Alcohol addiction|addicted]]. Notorious [[Rum-running|bootlegger]] Marimuthu (who later became a councillor of [[Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike|BBMP]]) and Ameer Jan were running the operation.<ref name="Hooch" /> Hooch is brewed from [[industrial alcohol]], by separating methyl alcohol and adding water – a risky process which can leave traces of poisonous [[Methyl Alcohol|methyl alcohol]]. The brew is a slow poison, damaging the [[kidney]] and intestines, leading to slow death.<ref name="Hooch" /> <br />
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On 7 July 1981, about 300 people (Official figures 229) around the [[Tannery Road]] area died as a result of consuming this spurious alcohol. Most of the victims were poor [[Dalit]]s. Police registered cases against 63 people, but none were convicted or punished. An enquiry commission revealed a connection between some politicians and the bootleggers. A paltry sum of [[Indian rupee|INR]]1000 ({{Inflation|index=IN|value=1000|start_year=1981|r=-2|fmt=eq|cursign=INR}}; close to US$200) per family was paid to the victims by the [[R. Gundu Rao|Gundu Rao]] government.<ref name="Hooch">{{cite news|last1=Hanumantharaya|first1=C H|title=The Big Hooch Tragedy|url=http://talkmag.in/cms/columns/crimefolio/item/421-the-big-hooch-tragedy|accessdate=4 January 2015|issue=Bangalore|publisher=Talk|date=14 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150104095842/http://talkmag.in/cms/columns/crimefolio/item/421-the-big-hooch-tragedy|archive-date=2015-01-04|url-status=dead}}</ref><br />
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== See also ==<br />
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* [[List of alcohol poisonings in India]]<br />
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== References ==<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
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[[Category:1981 disasters in India|Karnataka Liquor Deaths, 1981]]<br />
[[Category:Alcohol-related deaths in India]]<br />
[[Category:Methanol poisoning incidents]]<br />
[[Category:1980s in Bengaluru]]<br />
[[Category:July 1981 in India]]<br />
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