Minister rubbishes reports of deaths

SPURIOUS TODDY

Hyderabad: Minister for Excise and Prohibition T Padma Rao on Wednesday rubbished the reports of deaths due to adulterated toddy. “Not a single person died of drinking spurious sap,” he asserted. Replying to a question posed by the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) legislators in the Assembly, the Minister said it was not true that there was no truth in the reports that the toddy addicts died of withdrawal symptoms due to non-availability of sap.

• Padma Rao says there is no truth in reports of toddy addicts succumbing to withdrawal symptoms due to non-availability of sap
• ‘The government is prepared to buy toddy tapping machines in bulk if manufacturers are ready to make them available at concession’

The government was yet to receive post-mortem reports on the recent deaths reported in the districts, he said and added that the reports would only reveal the facts about the spate of deaths. In view of increasing deaths of toddy tappers while collecting toddy from the trees, the Minister said government approached Kerala government which provided toddy tapping machines to the tappers community. Each machine cost about Rs 10,000.

If the companies agree to provide at Rs 5000 each, the government would buy them in bulk and distribute them to the tappers, he said. The Minister said the government had decided to plant high-yielding palm trees along the tank bunds to ensure high income source for tappers. The high-yielding verities would be brought from Chhattisgarh and Kerala. The Excise Department would alone take up the plantation.

Rao also said as much as Rs 28.25 lakh had already been sanctioned towards payment of ex-gratia for toddy tappers. The ex-gratia amount had been increased to Rs 5 lakh from Rs 2 lakh for those who died and those who suffered permanent disability due to fall from trees. The monthly pension for those above 50 years of age and unable to climb trees was increased from Rs 200 to Rs 1000 per month.