Tainted liquor kills 31 in Pakistan

At least 31 people are dead in Pakistan after consuming tainted liquor.

People, who fell unconscious after consuming spurious alcohol, receive medical treatment at a hospital, in Faisalabad, Pakistan. Source: AAP

At least 31 people have died from drinking tainted liquor over the Christmas holiday in Pakistan, police and doctors say, raising an earlier toll.

Local police officer Atif Imran Qureshi said on Tuesday dozens of people were transported to hospitals in the eastern Punjab province after they consumed contaminated alcohol.

A total of 19 people died on Tuesday, and 12 the day before, he said.

Umair Ahmed, a physician at Allied hospital in the city of Faisalabad, said a dozen more people were still being treated.

Alcohol is mostly prohibited in Muslim-majority Pakistan, but non-Muslims can purchase it from licensed shops. Most poor Christians buy homemade liquor - which is more affordable but causes deaths almost every year.