Tirupati laddu: Sacred Prasad, adulteration scandal, and the question of temple governance
Among the iconic temple ‘Prasadams’ of Bharat, Tirupati Laddu stands out as the all-time favourite of all age groups. The mere mention of ‘Tirupati laddu’ invokes childlike enthusiasm and excitement among all devotees, irrespective of age. Whenever a pilgrim proceeds to Tirupati, his friends and relations expect that he will return and give them a laddu. Households would receive it with utmost devotion, symbolizing the entry of Lord Venkateshwara into their homes. Even diabetics throw to the winds all taboos about sugar, just to savour the king of Prasads.
Temple Prasadams are sacred, divine food offerings, integral to the worship experience in Sanatana Dharma. These are unique recipes with deep cultural significance. Renowned examples apart from the GI-tagged Tirupati laddu are the rich Ambalapuzha Palpayasam, the 56-item Mahaprasad of Puri Jagannath Temple, Palani Panchamritham, Aravana Payasam of Sabarimala, Modak of Ganapatipule, and many more. In fact, each temple in Bharat has its own unique Prasad, unparalleled in any religious system elsewhere in the world.
The term ‘Prasad’ is derived from the Sanskrit word “Prasada,” meaning gracious gift or blessing, that is offered to divine deities during pujas (rituals) and then distributed to devotees. The concept of Prasad is rooted in the belief that the deity partakes in the offering, sanctifying it, and returning it to the devotees as a blessing. This act of receiving Prasad is considered a unique form of divine communion in Hinduism, symbolizing spiritual blessings to the devotees.
The philosophy that Annam Brahma “Food is Brahman” (the Supreme Being) is central to the concept of offering delicacies to the divine deities, a practice unknown to other religions. The preparation of the Tirupati laddu (Srivari Laddu) is a highly sacred process conducted by specialized Brahmin cooks (temple staff) within the temple kitchen (Potu) at Tirumala. As per Sanatana Dharma, the Murthi or Vigraha is revered as a living entity (as also a juristic person), and is offered food, and fruits among others, and it is called “Naivedyam”. In Sanskrit, Naivedyam simply means food offering to the Lord.
The preparation of the Tirupati laddu (Srivari Laddu) at the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) is a sacred, ritualistic process conducted by specialized Brahmin cooks (Acharyas) guided by Vaikhanasa Agama scriptures. The process involves continuous chanting of esoteric mantras and “Om Namo Venkatesaya“, which is the primary, 12-syllable mantra (Dwadasakshari Mantra) of Lord Venkateshwara. Other mantras that are recited include Vishnu Gayatri Mantra, Pavamana Sukta, Vedic Hymns, and Divya Prabandham.
Vaikhanasa Agama Shastra prescribes that the vessels to cook for the Lord are to be made of gold, silver, copper, or earthen pots. The fire for cooking is to be brought from the Yagasala, the place where all the everyday fire rituals are performed within the temple. The fuel for the fire must come from a Mango tree or Ashwatha or Palasa.
The Lord’s everyday dining is a well-laid-out menu, not just confined to laddu. There are elaborate, detailed menus covering three time spans, known as Bala Bhogam, Raja Bhogam, and Shayana Bhogam. In addition, there are innumerable other food offerings also.
The first holy offering of the laddu was documented on August 2, 1715, and the creation is credited to Kalyanam Iyengar. He was the one to introduce the Mirasidari System to create the laddu. Cooks responsible for preparing the laddus in the kitchen are called Gamekar-Mirasidars. The Laddu that we see currently acquired its shape under the Madras government circa 1940 after undergoing almost 6 iterations. According to ancient inscriptions, the existence of the laddu was well documented in 1480, and was labelled as “Manoharam”.
3 different types of laddus are cooked – Asthanam, Kalyanotsavam, and Proktham laddus:
- Asthanam laddus are for special occasions, and are made with saffron flowers, cashews, and almonds.
- Kalyanotsavam laddus are big in size and prepared and distributed to devotees offering Kalyanotsavam.
- Proktham laddus are the common variety that are for bulk consumption.
The amazing popularity of the Tirupati laddu can be gauged from the fact that a particular foreign religion, hyperactive in religious conversions in India, has even copied it, and they have started offering it to concrete idols of White European and American men and women, who had once ridiculed and mocked how Hindu idols made of rock could eat! It was using this specious argument that many gullible Hindus were converted. But, Karma has unique ways of answering, idols of those White men and women are offered laddus! Nobody knows whether they are consuming it!
Most unfortunately, the Tirupati laddu has got mired in an adulteration scam. The Special Investigation Team (SIT), set up by the Andhra Pradesh state government in mid-2024 to probe irregularities in Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) procurement, submitted its supplementary charge sheet (No. 01/2025). This document concludes that the adulteration was a systemic and long-running fraud that began well before the 2020 policy changes.
According to the investigation, supplies of adulterated ghee – meant to be “Agmark Special Grade” cow ghee used in laddu production – began on February 18, 2019, and the scale and sophistication of the fraud expanded significantly between 2020–2024. Latest revelations indicate that the ghee supplied was heavily adulterated with Korean monoglycerides. There is also a suspicion that animal fat could have been used. The adulterated ghee was produced by mixing palm oil, kernel oil, monoglycerides, beta-carotene, acetic acid ester, and lactic acid. Monoglycerides are used to make the mixture look like ghee and also to enhance its shelf life, as they act as a preservative.
The SIT describes a “cartel” of shell companies and a bribery network, involving TTD officials, which enabled suppliers to pass off mixtures of vegetable oils and chemicals as pure ghee, hoodwinking laboratory tests and inspectors. Ironically, the Tirupati laddu is certified by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)! Following quality concerns in 2017, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) obtained a central FSSAI license for its kitchen, confirming compliance with food safety regulations for both its laddu and Annaprasadam. But the fraud could not be detected, despite the fact that the scale of adulteration escalated during the period 2020-2024. This is an extraordinary situation involving public health, particularly relating to food products.
The real problem is the control by political parties over temples, in the guise of government control and administration. All political parties across India are guilty of iniquitous control over temples, while simultaneously maintaining a hypocritical hands-off policy from mosques, churches, gurudwaras, Jain, Buddhist, and Parsi places of worship. In the whole world, Hindus are the only community who have the mortification of seeing their places of worship controlled by atheists of all political parties, in the guise of government control. Be it Tirupathi, Sabarimala, Guruvayoor, Palani, Rameswaram, Madurai Meenakshi, Kollur, Varanasi, Puri Jagganath, or the Kolhapur Mahalakshmi Temple, it is the same story of crooked politicians masquerading as government-appointed trustees, indulging in wanton and naked corruption.
Why should Hindu pilgrims be fraudulently made to buy chemically adulterated laddu? There is also a surfeit of ghee sold in the market by known and unknown brands; are they also selling such chemically adulterated stuff across India? All the milk sweets and Desi ghee preparations need to be tested across the country, to come to grips with what is an epidemic of massive proportions. But this is a national health issue, which nobody wants to speak about.
Politicians get a steady supply of unaccounted money pilfered from the Hundi collections. Aggravated corruption occurs in the constant constructions that are taking place, the purchase of sub-standard materials, fixtures, and furniture. With the enormous Hundi collections in every temple, world-class toilets as seen in airports and malls could be constructed, but the pitiable condition in which Temple facilities are found is absolutely shameful, and pilgrims have to go through harrowing experiences. In many temples, IAS officers are functioning as Executive Officers, but they simply kowtow to their political masters and abet their corrupt practices.
In spite of the everyday grand larceny that Hindu temples are subjected to by corrupt political families and their sycophants, neither the courts, the media, nor even international organizations like the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) are examining the discrimination meted out to over 1000 million plus Hindus. The OHCHR addresses religious discrimination primarily through the Human Rights Council (HRC), which mandates Special Rapporteurs and working groups to monitor, investigate, and report on violations of freedom of religion or belief. Human Rights Council (HRC) addresses violations through resolutions, including the “Istanbul Process” to implement measures against religious intolerance. Key initiatives include the “Faith for Rights” framework and the Network on Racial Discrimination and Protection of Minorities. Most ironically, the combating of religious discrimination is one of the oldest thematic topics of discussion within the UN human rights system, and in decades of its existence, not even a single discussion has taken place on the plight of Hindu temples in India! Even in spite of the chemically adulterated Laddus being thrust on the gullible lakhs of pilgrims, not one international organization or media has questioned it? Is it not a grave human rights issue?
European bodies monitoring religious discrimination include the Council of Europe’s European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), which produces country-specific reports on discrimination, and the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), which monitors rights violations, including antisemitism and religious intolerance. Though these bodies track hate speech, violence, and structural discrimination across Europe, there is no restriction that they cannot examine religious discrimination happening in other countries. Other organizations relevant are the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), which works with the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) to help states improve the recording and reporting of hate crimes, including those motivated by religious bias. Another organization is the Global Exchange on Religion in Society (GERIS), which is a network connecting civil society actors within and outside Europe to foster coexistence among people of different faiths.
In addition to the above, there is the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which is the primary independent, bipartisan federal agency created by Congress (via the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act) that monitors religious freedom violations abroad and makes policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress. It is not a Senate committee itself, but its commissioners are appointed by Congressional leadership and the President.
But none of the above organizations take note of the blatant religious discrimination against Hindus by various state governments, perpetuated through the instrumentality of Devaswom Boards or Devasthanams. Had these Boards not been in existence, Hindus could have made a sale of Prasadams into a multi-crore global venture, giving employment to thousands of people and a grand temple supply chain. Imagine the Tirupati laddu, if marketed globally using digital marketing, TV advertising, out-of-home (OOH) advertising, and social media campaigns, would make it a household name across every continent and country.
This writer holds Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu in high esteem, as it was during his tenure that the National Academy of Customs Indirect Taxes and Narcotics (NACIN) was allotted nearly 550 acres of land in Palasamudram in the Sri Sathya Sai District of Andhra Pradesh. Having personally experienced his statesmanship, magnetism, and dynamism, as Director General of NACIN, this writer is of the opinion that it will be child’s play for Shri. Chandrababu Naidu, to set up a AI monitored, robotic laddu-making factory, which will ensure zero adulteration of any kind, as also completely untouched by human hands. Millions of Laddus can be manufactured, 24×7, for global distribution and consumption, as a revered Prasad, a national gift, a wedding gift, a birthday gift, or simply delivered to every household in India, for the joy of receiving the Lord’s delicacy, a feat that will be unmatched, for all times to come.
“Om Namo Venkatesaya”
Note:
1. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
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