An official with the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) – the board that manages the Sri Venkateswara temple in Andhra Pradesh – has weighed in on the row around animal fat allegedly being found in ghee used to make the laddoos served there, saying that firms promising to supply ghee at such a low price should have been a red flag to the previous government.
On Friday, TTD executive officer J Syamala Rao said that four ghee samples were sent to NDDB CALF (Centre for Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food) on July 6 and July 12 this year. All four, Rao claimed, had been supplied by A R Dairy Food Private Limited and had arrived in four tankers.
The firm has denied this, with the head of its quality control department telling The Indian Express, “That ghee sample cannot be from A R Dairy Food Private Limited, that is our stand.”
According to Rao, the former YSR Congress Party government had floated a tender for supply of ghee on March 12 this year, and it was awarded on May 8. The supply started from May 15.
In July last year, the TTD had decided not to renew its contract with the Karnataka Milk Federation and instead opted for other suppliers after floating e-tenders. After the TDP-led NDA came to power in June this year, the contracts were cancelled and TTD renewed ties with the Karnataka Milk Federation to supply Nandini brand ghee again.
“The quality of ghee in two tankers that arrived on July 6 and two on July 12 was really bad. It looked like ghee but it was not. Immediately, all supplies were stopped and action initiated. TTD does not have an adulteration testing lab, and samples have to be sent to NABL-accredited labs. It was decided to test the four samples at the NDDB CALF lab, which revealed the presence of animal fat,” Rao said on Friday.
“Pure cow ghee cannot be supplied at Rs 320 per kg. It is not a viable price. The low rate should have been a red flag because the quality of ghee would be compromised. When the new government was sworn in and I was appointed the executive officer, the CM (Chadrababu Naidu) expressed concern about the quality of laddoos as well as the quality of ghee used. We warned the ghee suppliers that action would be taken if they fail the quality tests. Among the suppliers, ghee supplied by A R Dairy Foods was found to be substandard, so we sent the samples to the lab,” Rao said, adding that the firm has been blacklisted.
The chairman of KMF, Bheema Naik, had also said earlier that they were selling ghee at Rs 400 per kg, and that if any company has bid at a much lower price, they will compromise on the quality.
“A committee appointed by the Naidu government has recommended that the TTD set up its own adulteration testing lab. It will cost around Rs 75 lakh and NDDB has agreed to donate some equipment and help us set it up. It may be set up by the end of this year. Till that time, we have decided to send ghee samples for testing to NABL-accredited labs. This was the first time in the history of TTD that ghee samples have been sent outside of TTD labs for testing. Our labs test for other parameters in the products that are procured but we lack adulteration testing equipment,” Rao said, adding that a total of five suppliers were awarded the contracts in May, and only one failed the test.
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