Dear Nara Chandrababu Naidu,
I am writing to you as one of the millions of devotees of Lord Venkateswara to express anguish and anger at the shocking revelations about the use of ghee adulterated with fish oil, beef tallow and animal fat in the preparation of sacred offerings at the Tirumala temple. The violation of sacred sentiments stems from systemic apathy blessed by political insurance. The focus of this letter is not the who, but the what, why and how factors that enabled this outrage.
I am sure you recognise the risks of supply chain neglect and its catastrophic consequences for the lakhs who visit Tirumala. Having known you since the 1990s when you were chief minister of the unified Andhra Pradesh, I write in the hope that you will devote the attention the issue deserves. Allow me to share a few troubling questions and make a few suggestions to begin the process of healing and the restoration of trust.
Let’s start with the known unknowns. What is the process of detection of fraudulent conduct and what does the decision tree look like? The government’s revelations show that the report on adulteration was received in July. Why did the government wait till September 20 to make it public? The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) prepares around 3.5 lakh laddus every day. Pilgrims share the precious prasadam with friends and family across India and the world. Early dissemination about the dastardly act would have alerted the faithful. So what explains the gap between the receipt of the report and its revelation?
Detection is normally followed up by action. We know from CEO Shyamala Rao that a panel of four dairy experts has been formed to advise the TTD on the process for procuring quality ghee for the temple. But critically, the public is yet to be informed if it is just one company. And what action has been taken against the perpetrators? Has the TTD or the government proceeded with filing of cases since the discovery in July?
Secondly, what is the process of audit of quality and detection of adulteration? It has been stated in a news report that “four tankers of ghee supplied by a private company appeared suspicious”. Does ‘suspicion’ pass scientific rigour? Surely the TTD can do better. What’s worse is that officials admitted that suppliers “took advantage of the lack of in-house testing facilities”. It does seem the TTD lacks an established process to ensure palatability of ingredients and sanctity of sentiments.
Mercifully, a blessed soul at the water and food analysis lab at TTD alarmed by the risks, sent samples for testing to the Centre of Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food (CALF) in Gujarat. The choice of CALF—one of the 210 FSSAI-certified labs that include half a dozen in Andhra Pradesh—has strained many political eyebrows. Be that as it may, was a parallel testing organised? It is also unclear if samples of only one or all suppliers of ghee were sent for testing. Ideally, after adulteration was detected, samples of all the suppliers should be sent for testing. This should be mandatory.
The much-valued laddu is only one of the offerings the pilgrims seek and take home. Millions of devotees are now wrestling with fears of what else may be adulterated. What is the process of identifying adulteration in other inputs used in the preparation of the naivedyam—ranging from the ghee pongal to gudannam, from sakannam to shakkarannam, besides other savouries—offered to Lord Venkateswara and distributed to pilgrims? Is procurement dictated by competitive bidding or quality?
Are the inputs for these offerings subjected to quality tests, and if so, how often? The TTD should make the reports public to build confidence and credibility. Indeed, the TTD must go a step further. Justice Louis Brandeis, in his essay ‘What publicity can do’, observed, “Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.” The TTD should enable transparency and publish the names of all suppliers of all ingredients.
The blunt truth, dear chief minister, is that the desecration of sentiments is fostered by the status quo, systemic gaps left open by rent seekers. The TTD is among the richest institutions. With a budget of over Rs 5,000 crore, deposits of over Rs 18,000 crore and over 1,000 kg of gold, it has the resources to design a template for managing resources in tune with the times.
It must set up a modern, in-house, FSSAI-certified laboratory, perhaps in one of its universities. The IITs and IT giants in Hyderabad, Chennai and Bengaluru can surely help engineer and set up enterprise solutions to manage the input and output flows of the prasadam—a system that tests ingredients, logistics that ready them a day in advance, and to share reports on quality and use food robotics to mechanise that which can be mechanised. The adoption of modern systems applications and technology will mitigate the challenges of scale and complexity, and enable safety and trust.
Nothing, it would seem, is sacred at the confluence of power and pelf—and this is ominous. It is manifest that the Lord of the Seven Hills has alerted and shielded the faithful from greater harm. As believers in divinity, it is imperative we preserve that which is sacred.
Let me conclude with the chant reverberating in Tirumala: “Edukondalavada Venkataramana, Govinda, Govinda (Hail Venkataramana, Lord of the Seven Hills)”.
Best regards
Shankkar aiyAr
Author of The Gated Republic, Aadhaar:
A Biometric History of India’s 12 Digit
Revolution, and Accidental India
(shankkar.aiyar@gmail.com)