How is methanol procured and used as liquor? | Explained

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The story so far: The Kallakurichi illicit liquor tragedy that has so far claimed more than 50 lives is entirely familiar in its cause, sequence of events, and aftermath. Such tragedies happen periodically across India in various States. Almost all the postmortem reports of the victims attribute the cause to methanol consumption.

Also Read: Kallakurichi hooch tragedy: Fermented with methanol and apathy

How are ethanol, methanol made?

Ethanol is legal liquor for consumption. It is produced biologically whereas methanol is produced from fuels such as coal in India. Molasses, which are a by-product of the sugar making process, form the starting material of distilleries that are often located close to sugar factories. They produce rectified spirit which is distilled further to produce edible extra neutral alcohol that in turn goes into making Indian Made Foreign Liquor, a lucrative cash cow for State governments. During ethanol production in responsible distilleries, methanol is also produced but is carefully removed since the processes are highly controlled.

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Methanol is produced from coal and other fossil fuels. While ethanol can be made edible, methanol is poison. Even very low concentrations of methanol can be toxic, often fatal. However, it is needed to produce a range of products that are highly useful. Paints, for instance, can’t be produced without methanol.

Is methanol easy to procure?

Just like ethanol, methanol is a highly controlled substance. Rules in Tamil Nadu ensure the manufacturing, transportation and storage are all licenced, monitored and the quantity and quality audited.

In northern Tamil Nadu, much of the methanol used in industries is sourced from Andhra Pradesh. Ground reportage suggests the existence of a lucrative methanol pilferage racket operating enroute and at the end-user side as well.

Also Read: Death by methanol: on the hooch tragedy in Tamil Nadu 

It is possible that methanol formed during the crude distillation process, adopted by the bootleggers at Kallakurichi, wasn’t removed, leading to methanol poisoning. However, the widespread nature of contamination and scale of the Kallakurichi tragedy suggests that methanol was procured and supplied separately, either as part of a brew or alone in a diluted form. Given that illicit liquor has been produced and distributed widely here over many months, possibly years, methanol use was not a one-off event that happened only this fateful week at Kallakurichi.

Why is methanol used?

Most of the hooch tragedies in India occur due to methanol contamination in liquor. Street wisdom, or belief rather, may well be that the relatively inexpensive but potent poison that is methanol, if diluted enough, could provide the same effect as ordinary liquor — a state of intoxication or ‘kick’ for consumers.

Also Read: Killer moonshine: On the hooch tragedy in Kallakurichi 

Prosecutors in the 2015 Malvani, Mumbai hooch tragedy case in which more than 100 people died and some 75 were injured argued that all the accused had entered into a criminal conspiracy, and deliberately procured and supplied poisonous methanol. Lawyers defending the accused argued that their defendants would not knowingly add methanol. It made no business sense. And bootleggers, just like in Kallakurichi, live amidst the community. They provide a service that is much in demand and wouldn’t want to kill their own folk. The additional sessions judge S. D. Tawshikar, in the Malvani case, acquitted 10 of the 14 accused but convicted four. The judge did not find anyone guilty of violating the Poisons Act of 1919. The four were convicted of criminal conspiracy, and culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

What needs to be done?

The periodic occurrence of methanol poisoning suggests the need for strong central legislation that can work with State legislation. Various laws such as the Poisons Act that involves State governments can tighten the inter-State methanol supply chain. The implementation of laws holds the key, especially when there are plans to ramp up the production of both ethanol and methanol for use as cheaper, eco-friendly alternatives to petrol and diesel for transportation.

The NITI Aayog has talked of ramping up methanol production from two metric tonnes to 20. Keeping methanol and ethanol separate and not allowing any pilferage should be a national priority.