The Central Health Ministry is to provide a show cause with lab results having affected four ghee supplying firms out of which one ghee was found to have been adulterated. This development has drawn concern as to what informed the usage of substandard raw materials in the preparation of the renowned Tirupati Laddu, which is a religious offering taken at the Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple located in Tirumala.
In response, YV Subba Reddy, former chairman of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), has approached Supreme Court, seeking to constitute independent committee comprising of one bench judge of Supreme Court to look into these allegations. There is emphasis on the quality of ghee to be used with much consideration being taken after cases of animal fat being included in the ghee were brought to light. To reassure the devotees, a purification rite such as the ‘Shanti Homam’ was conducted at the temple, as per Vaikhanasa Agama.
Besides that, the Temple Authority also set up a sensory panel which assesses the prasadam based on taste, smell and texture. In a related development, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has formed a Special Investigative Team (SIT). This team will then consider the claims made above and present a report that would explain future measures to be taken to stop cases of adulteration affecting the holy Tirupati Prasadam. The issue has now taken political dimension with the current Andhra Pradesh State Chief, Naidu accusing the erstwhile YSRCP government for the use of inferior ghee
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