Kallakurichi hooch tragedy | Three children stare at uncertain future after losing both parents

Teenagers in Karunapuram face an uncertain future after losing parents to hooch tragedy, struggling to support themselves.

Kokila, 16 and her two brothers Harish, 15 and Raghavan, 14 of Karunapuram in Kallakurichi town are in the dark. After losing both their parents Suresh, 42 and Vadivukarasi, 34 to the hooch tragedy that has killed at least 34 persons from their locality, the teenagers are now staring at an uncertain future.

Their father Suresh, who had lost his right hand in an accident had worked as a painter, while their mother Vadivukarasi was a daily wage labourer.

“My father was addicted to liquor and he was recently lured to illicit arrack. He came home from work on Tuesday (June 18, 2024) morning, complaining of severe pain in the stomach and blurred vision. Neighbours and relatives rushed him to the Government Kallakurichi Medical College Hospital but his condition began to deteriorate soon afterwards, and he died. I had pleaded with my father many times not to drink but to no avail,” says Kokila with tears rolling down her cheeks.

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“After losing his right hand, my father worked very hard to provide for the family. He said he drank arrack to help him cope with the daily exertion. But my mother was not addicted to liquor. She worked as a daily wage labourer and was suffering from a fistula. On Tuesday, my mother accidentally consumed the illicit arrack my father had kept in the house. She started experiencing symptoms of blurred vision but did not tell anyone. She was subsequently rushed to the hospital but succumbed first, followed by my father,” Kokila says.

The three children came to know about the death of their parents only after returning from school on Tuesday evening. “We learnt that our parents had died only after seeing it television,” says Kokila.

“Our family has been shattered and now I don’t know how to eke out a living and support my two brothers studying in class 10 and 9 respectively. We have no means of livelihood. The meagre wages that my parents earned was spent on the payment of various EMIs,” she says.