BENGALURU: The political slugfest over non-procurement of Nandini ghee for use in Tirupati laddus continues. Officials from Karnataka Milk Federation Limited (KMF) on Monday said the federation stopped supplying ghee to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) one-and-a-half years ago.
The statement came after some leaders of opposition parties alleged that because of the hike in milk prices, KMF is unable to meet the demand to supply ghee to TTD to make the world-famous laddus.
A senior official from KMF said, “We stopped supplying ghee to TTD one-and-a-half years ago. TTD invites tenders once in six months and the prices quoted by other producers seem to be attractive to the temple’s trust. However, the price of KMF’s ghee is low when compared to other producers, including Amul. Nandini ghee costs Rs 610 per kg. Amul sells its ghee for Rs 640.”
‘Pride of K’taka taking a hit’
The official said the last supply of 2050 metric tonnes of ghee was in 2021. Though KMF had informed TTD that it could meet its demand for ghee, the price factor seems to be a matter of concern for the temple trust. KMF is ready for negotiations if TTD contacts it, he said.
However, former minister and BJP leader CT Ravi on Monday said that he is not happy with the KMF’s statement. It contradicted the statement of the KMF chairman issued on Sunday. Ravi said, “On Sunday, the KMF chairman stated that the federation cannot supply ghee because of the increasing production cost.
But on Monday, KMF officials issued a contradicting statement that the federation stopped supplying ghee to TTD in 2021. As per the information I received, KMF supplied ghee to TTD till June 2023. Why is KMF lying now?” Ravi said supplying ghee to TTD for its laddus is a matter of pride for Karnataka.
The state government should find ways to ensure that supply of ghee to TTD is not affected. “The pride of Karnataka is taking a hit because of the Congress government’s decision to hike the price of milk and the inability of KMF to convince such a big customer to continue ghee procurement from it,” he said.