Homebrewed liquor -- "katchi sharab" or "tharra," in vernacular -- has emerged as one toxic drink for the small-towners.

In a series of separate incidents, the liquor recently killed more than 130 people, including women, who were partying on the occasion of Xmas or Holi in different parts of the country. Last week, it took five lives in the TV colony area in Peshawar. Earlier, in December 2016, more than 46 people in the town of Toba Tek Singh expired after consuming a methanol-tainted alcohol on Christmas night. On the night of January 19, moonshine, illegally distilled homemade whisky, killed at least 12 in Yohanabad and Liaqatabad, Lahore.

The TT Singh tragedy grew worse as the families of the victims tried to escape the notice of the police. They even avoided the media. Since the police had been asked to produce results fast and quick, it added Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act and Section 302 of the Pakistan Penal Code to the case registered. Also, Section 322 was reportedly changed into 322(A) with five arrests. Meanwhile, the government constituted an inquiry commission, headed by Justice (retd) Ali Nawaz Chohan, Chairman, National Commission on Human Rights. This was followed by fierce crackdowns, arrests and interrogations amounting to harassment of the grief-stricken families.

Nasir Masih, the relative of a victim, told TNS that the "police terrified us [while we were] in the hospital, and kept asking [us] about any links to the bootleggers of the ominous drink.

"The hospital staff also misbehaved," he added, implying that those who drank had to pay a heavy price for it on a societal level also.

The question arises as to why the poor should have to drink alcohol that is not regulated. Also, it remains to be seen how the practice can be checked effectively. As a ‘veteran’ bootlegger (not named here), who works for a private hotel, said, "The ban on alcohol may be the reason."

Liquor was declared a no-no (not for non-Muslims) in 1977, but alcohol has been available covertly and illegally. "The law states that the Muslims cannot purchase, sell or even drink alcohol, but my clients are mostly well-off Muslims," the bootlegger revealed.

"In their greediness, those who have the permit sell liquor to the rich Muslims at exorbitant prices. As a result, it becomes unaffordable for the non-Muslims. The vacuum is filled by the cheaper -- and deadlier -- alternatives that include home-made, spurious alcohol."

Recalling his meeting with a victim of the Toba Tek Singh tragedy, the bootlegger said, "He asked for alcohol. Because the stock had been sold in the black market, he had to go back empty handed."

According to Shafakat Masih, a staff member at a church in Lahore, the "Muslims, which make up 97 per cent of the country’s total population, have captured the liquor market that is legal only for the 3 per cent."

Dr Talal Zubair, Director, Willing Ways, the oldest addiction treatment centre in the city, says 20 million people, Muslims as well as non-Muslims, consume alcohol on a regular basis.

Iqbal Masih, who was recently discharged from the Faisalabad Allied Hospital where the victims of methanol-tainted liquor had been admitted, says it is impossible for the poor people to buy local alcohol whose price ranges between Rs1,000 to Rs3,500.

An official of Excise and Taxation Department opines that if imported liquor is introduced in the Pakistani market with lower taxes, this shall not only increase chances of liquor availability to its legal buyers but will also contribute to reducing the prices of local liquor.

"Incidents of deaths from poisonous alcohol are on the rise because its production at the illegally set up distilleries as well as its sale is unchecked."

The distilleries are a huge concern. But "there is no specific data available on them," says a senior police official in the IG office, Lahore. "Scores of distilleries are up and running, illegally, mostly in small towns."

He terms the countryside and the outskirts of Lahore as safe havens for the rampant business due to feeble policing. "Since the police is focused on the metros, the small towns remain neglected. Illegal distilleries flourish here because they get cheap labour. Because of lack of opportunities for employment, the unskilled labour is ever ready to work for them. The distilleries mafia capitalises on the situation and operates in these areas most comfortably."

Over the past couple of years, however, the official says, the police has "raided a number of them [the distilleries] and made arrests. But later, these spring back in action."

Illegal distilleries are usually run by quacks who do not have an accurate knowledge of processing liquor fit for human consumption. They often go wrong with the fermentation and distillation methods.

Since methanol is cheap and available in the open market, it is added in order to enrich the alcohol level. Sometimes, methanol is used considering it ethanol which is used in various alcoholic beverages called ethyl alcohol or denatured spirit. Both are similar in their physical properties, composition, colour and even odour.

Tharra is usually prepared at home by mixing methanol. It is also produced from industrial grade ethanol and medical spirit.

To quote Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) CEO Dr Muhammad Aslam, "We do not regulate methanol, as it is not a drug."

"Methanol is a chemical used in the paint industry, rubber industry, plastic industry, furniture and fuel industry," says an official at Pakistan Chemical Manufacture Association (PCMA). "It is also used in furniture polishing, bathroom cleaning and petroleum products.

"It is not produced in Pakistan; in fact, it is imported from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and South Africa. Some people buy industrial-grade ethanol which sometimes contains up to 50 per cent of methanol and try it as liquor. This is also why tragedies happen."

Meanwhile, the health paraphernalia, supposed to provide medical care to those who consume toxic liquor, in the emergencies of district and city public hospitals, looks very sketchy. Usually, upon admission, as a routine, fluid or anti-toxin (fomepizole or others) is administered to the patient in order to neutralise the toxicity of the spurious liquor. Drips supplemented by vitamins are also injected to help the patient become stable.

Hemodialysis, internationally known to be the best treatment for quickly flushing out poisonous elements from the bodies, is not available here. Dr Shoaib Niazi who mostly attends the emergency of Mayo Hospital, Lahore, admits the fact by saying, "We are trying to have it installed."

Dr Abdul Wahid, a private medical practitioner, is of the view that methanol is so lethal that once it is ingested, all sorts of medical treatments, including the stomach wash in advanced hospitals, with trained doctors in attendance, are expected to fail.

"When it goes in, methanol breaks down into formaldehyde, and then forms formic acid, which is highly toxic for the human body. It attacks your nerve cells, especially the optic nerve, and damages the liver and kidneys in no time. It can also cause vomiting, abdominal pain, drowsiness, dizziness and, eventually, death."

Abid Faiz, a PCMA member, blames sugar mills for the untoward incidents. "The mills usually do not mix 3-4 per cent pyodine in ethanol produced during the fermentation of sugarcane, as pyodine is costly, even though they are bound to do so legally. If pyodine is mixed in, ethanol turns dark brown and produces a very bad odour.

"There are no proper checks and balances on methanol import and sale in the market," he continues. "It is only excisable and taxable in Sindh. In Punjab, its taxation is sub judice."