India alcohol death toll rises to 98

NEW DELHI: The death toll from a toxic bootleg alcohol scandal in the north Indian state of Punjab rose to 98 late on Sunday, officials and reports said.

Police have arrested 25 people so far over the worsening tragedy, which starting coming to light late last week, the Press Trust of India news agency said. Hundreds of people die every year in India from illegal alcohol made in backstreet distilleries which sells for as little as 10 rupees (13 US cents) a litre, affordable for even the poorest.

The death toll from the illicit booze had risen to 75 in Punjab´s Tarn Taran district after further investigation, the local administration´s deputy commissioner Kulwant Singh said. "Several families refused to divulge details of deaths and a few even cremated them. We have come to this number after information gathering," Singh told AFP Sunday. A further 11 people had died in Gurdaspur district, a local official said.