For Rasheeda Begum (43), widow of Praveen’s uncle Suresh, mourning has been impossible, such is the anger she feels for her husband. “He was an addict and there was nothing more I could have done to stop him. We fought everyday over his drinking but nothing changed. I am so angry I can’t even mourn him,” Banu said.

Their daughter S Sushmitha (17), however, misses her father dearly. Despite the loss, she secured over 500 marks in her class 12 board examination and is hoping to join a paramedical course.

Banu saved part of the solatium of Rs 10 lakh for her daughter’s higher education and is using the remaining for their day-to-day expenses. Despite her anger at her husband, she said there are still occasions when she wishes he could have survived at least with disabilities. “He used to be loving whenever he was sober,” she recalled.

R Anil (52) did survive the hooch, although he lost his vision. His inability to give up liquor, however, enrages his wife A Latha (45). “I do not mean it, but sometimes, to express my anger, I have told him I wish he had died as I would have at least received the Rs 10 lakh solatium,” she told TNIE.

Anil, born in Rajasthan, fell in love with Latha when her family visited the state around 25 years ago. He moved to Kallakurichi after marrying her. Once a cheerful painter, he now spends his days seated at the entrance of the house, needing support to navigate his home.

To support the family after the tragedy, Latha picked up tailoring but only earns Rs 100 a day compared to the Rs 1,000 her husband once brought home. While the couple’s daughter is married, their 23-year-old older son met with an accident recently, leaving Latha and their younger son (21) the sole breadwinners. As they live in Latha’s mother’s house, they are spared the burden of rent. The compensation of Rs 50,000 they received from the government was exhausted soon after the incident.

Ardent DMK supporter S Mayakannan (53), also survived the incident but has lost his vision and become nearly bed-ridden. He is cared for by his wife M Rajamani and their 21-year-old son, named after the late DMK leader Murasoli Maran.

“My mother earns Rs 300 a day from odd jobs and also gives bath and cares for my father. I recently quit a temporary job as the employers were not paying salary,” Maran said

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