More than 20 crore Tirupati laddus out of 48.76 crore made during 2019-24 used spurious ghee: TTD chairman

Even as the Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing the Tirumala laddu ghee adulteration case, it has been estimated that a whopping 20.1 crore laddus out of the 48.76 crore distributed or sold to 11 crore devotees who visited the famous Sri Venkateswara temple at Tirumala during the period 2019-2024 were made of spurious ghee, according to Mr. B.R. Naidu, chairman, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Trust Board.

The sensational issue has shaken the TTD and hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus, over allegations of the use of impure/spurious ghee for the Prasadam considered sacred by the devotees.

Simple mathematical calculations based on the laddu production and sale figures from the TTD’s kitchen and distribution counters and compilation of the daily pilgrim footfall figures, besides the procurement details arrived at by the SIT from the ghee supplying companies have brought mind-boggling facts to the fore.

The SIT has concluded that Bhole Baba dairy of Uttarakhand, its ‘shell’ dairies and subsidiaries have collectively supplied 68 lakh kg of spurious ghee made of a mixture of palm oil, palm kernel and other toxic substances, estimated to be worth nearly ₹250 crore, to the TTD for preparation of ‘Srivari Laddu’ during the said period.

“According to the TTD’s marketing records, the total procurement of ghee from multiple dairies for those five years was 1.61 crore kg worth ₹534.7 crore, out of which the SIT probe found 68 lakh kg bought from Bhole Baba and its proxies as spurious, amounting to nearly 42% of the total procured stock,” said Mr. B.R. Naidu on Friday (November 21, 2025) in an informal interaction with The Hindu.

Laddu recipe

The age-old recipe for the sacred laddu strictly uses ingredients such as Bengal gram flour, ghee, sugar, cashew nuts, raisins, cardamom and sugar candy in a pre-determined proportion, which is never altered to maintain consistency and the taste. On an average, the Potu (temple kitchen) produces 3.5 lakh laddus every day, weighing 175 gm each, using 11,500 kg of ghee, while the total sale figures for the said period was pegged at 48.76 crore laddus.

The Tirumala shrine was visited by 10.97 crore devotees during June 2019-June 2024, notwithstanding the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a serious bearing on the arrival figures. It is now clear that the 10.97 crore visitors had received/purchased approximately 48.76 crore laddus.

“As nearly 11 crore devotees visited Tirumala during those five years in question, it is not possible to ascertain who received the laddus made of spurious ghee and who got the pure ones,” remarked the TTD trust board chairman B.R. Naidu.

Echoing a similar view, TTD board member and BJP spokesperson G. Bhanuprakash Reddy reiterated that whoever resorted to the heinous act of supplying spurious ghee for making the laddu prasadam should be brought to book.