KATHMANDU, May 4: The consumption of poisonous liquor has been considered as the prime reason behind the death of 12 locals in two adjoining settlements in Mahottari district over the past five days, according to a preliminary study carried out by the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP).
Dr Khem Karki, an advisor to Health Minister Bhanu Bhakta Dhakal, said that the ministry has dispatched a medical team consisting of epidemiologists and forensic experts to Meghnath Gorhana settlement of Bhangaha Municipality and Ahiman village of Bardibas Municipality to take further steps and bring the situation under control.
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"The medical team reached there on Sunday morning, and conducted an initial study. The primary findings suggest that the locals had taken ill after consuming excessive amounts of liquor. We are awaiting further details," Karki told Republica Online.
On Friday, the local authorities had collected the viscera of 11 people who had died in the two adjoining settlements. The deceased, aged 26 to 55, are said to have died of consuming toxic moonshine. The viscera samples were collected and sent to the forensic science laboratory of Nepal Police in Kathmandu.
The death toll from liquor poisoning has climbed to 12 as of Sunday with the deaths of Palat Sah, and Motilal Prajapati, an Indian national, in Ward 6 of Bhangaha on Saturday.
