Illegal alcohol can kill.
Back when I was at uni there was a rumour going round that one of the blokes who ran one of the local offies was brewing up bottles of vodka in his bathtub and selling it on the cheap.
We all know distilling spirits is something that should be left to the professionals, although that said £5 for 70cl is the kind of price that's pretty hard to turn down. Luckily for me, the stuff never did me any lasting damage.
Sadly, this wasn't the case in India over the weekend. At least 19 people have died and another six have been blinded after drinking tainted liquor in northern India, the Metro has reported.
A further 50 people became ill after drinking the home-brewed liquor on Friday and were being treated in hospitals in Etah district in Uttar Pradesh state, senior police officer Ajay Shankar Rai, said.
Mr Rai said the victims bought the liquor from a village shop on Friday evening and tragic consequences followed.
The shop owner, who has now been arrested, was selling a pouch of tainted liquor for only 15 rupees (20p), six times cheaper than the legal drink.
Most of the victims were poor farmers and labourers, looking for a cheap way to have some booze.
State authorities have suspended six officials, including four policemen, for allowing the sale of illicit liquor in Etah district, nearly 240 kilometres (150 miles) south-west of Lucknow, the Uttar Pradesh state capital.
India's poor often buy cheap home-brewed liquor made of syrups and medicines that are spiked with methyl alcohol and other industrial spirits to give it a kick.
Fucking hell and here was me thinking that drinking Frosty Jacks was bad. (Other bad alternatives available).
RIP to all those who have died and a speedy recovery to those in hospital.
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Words by James Dawson
Topics: Alcohol