C&EN on methanol adulteration in drinking alcohol

In last week's C&EN, this fascinating article (article by Puja Changoiwala):

Starting on a Wednesday morning in June, 225 people were admitted to four hospitals in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Their symptoms included vomiting, stomachache, headache, diarrhea, and eye irritation.

To support the medical staff, the government brought in extra doctors from nearby medical schools. Yet 65 of the 225 patients did not survive. Their cause of death was the same—they had all consumed methanol-laced illicit liquor, purchased from local bootleggers.

“The victims included men and women; essentially, the poor. Most of them worked as manual or agricultural laborers, and they consumed the spurious liquor because it’s cheap,” says M. S. Prasanth, the top government official in the district of Kallakurichi, where the incident occurred. “It’s a problem controlling methanol. A detailed inquiry has been ordered by the Tamil Nadu government to probe the tragedy.”

It is remarkable to me how important the correct setting of public policy (such as tax policy)  is to prevent bad outcomes like methanol poisoning.* 

*Cases like this seem to indicate that societal norms such as 'don't adulterate potable items with poisons' come with sufficient societal wealth. What a grim comment on humanity.