A strong, cheap liquor known locally as samsu and popular among Malaysia's working poor has grown into a serious social problem.

It is estimated that rural ethnic Indians in the country spend $6m a year on the rice wine which is easily available, and can be addictive and deadly.

Consumer groups campaigning to ban samsu for the past 30 years say they have been unsuccessful because there is no backing from the government which, they say, insists that it is the community's problem.

Al Jazeera's Divya Gopalan reports on how samsu addiction is pushing families to the brink of despair.