In God's own country, things aren't always what they seem to be. Take the case of Chalakudy in Kerala's Thrissur district, where residents recently opened their taps to discover water laced with alcohol.
According to a Manorama article, the inhabitants of 18 families of Solomon’s Avenue Flat near the KSRTC bus stand have a rather unusual problem -- their water smells and tastes like liquor.
Tracing the problem back to its root, it would seem that liquor seized from a nearby bar about six years ago, had recently been disposed off by officials.
The decision to dispose of around 6,000 litres of liquor on the bar premises meant that a huge pit had to be dug in the area. The seized alcohol was then poured into it. Reportedly, the arduous task took about six hours.
The pit in question is rather close to the well on the flat premises, and the alcohol appears to have seeped through the soil and made its way to the water.
A New Indian Express report adds that the problem was first discovered when Joshy Maliyekkal, the owner of a nearby apartment complex turned on a motor to fill his water tank on Sunday. He became suspicious after a bad smell began to emanate from the pipe.
The locals approached the Chalakudy municipality, following which health officials conducted an examination.
“The inspection proved the presence of alcohol in the water, and hence we called the excise officials and informed them of the matter,” the publication quoted ward Councillor V G Joji as saying.
Deputy Excise Commissioner T K Sanu added that carelessness while disposing of the liquor had led to the situation. He said that while distilleries are preferred in case large quantities of liquor have to be dumped, the fact that it was just 2,000 bottles had led to officials deciding to dig a pit to dispose of it.
They were unaware of the presence of an open well nearby, which is why this happened,” he added.
In the meantime, while residents wait for the water supply to return to normal, the bar owner will be paying the bills for the water supply of the affected families.
What does one do when alcohol (after a fashion) flows out of the water taps at home? Why, make plans to relocate of course!
Many on Twitter hailed the unusual situation, even as others expressed concern.