SABARIMALA: The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) is ready to meet any increase in the demand for ‘aravana prasadam’ with a buffer stock of 25 lakh containers in godowns. To maintain the buffer stock on the higher side, the production of prasadam will be kept at two lakh containers a day, said TDB executive officer at Sabarimala Rajendra Prasad.“The buffer stock of 25 lakh containers of the prasadam will be maintained to ensure its availability even when the demand is high. The present average daily demand for the prasadam stood at two lakh containers a day,” said Prasad.
He said a special task force had been deployed to oversee the functioning of the prasadam production plant and ensure the product’s quality. Prasad said there was adequate quantity of raw materials, including jaggery and cardamom, in TDB’s godowns at Sannidhanam and Pampa.
“While the arrival of jaggery from Maharashtra had been hit initially owing to the heavy rain there, it resumed when the weather conditions improved and now, there is no shortage of any raw material,” he said.Prasad said the buffer stock of appam prasadam in godowns stood at 3.5 lakh packets and its average daily production was regularised at 1.5 lakh packets, he said.“The average demand for appam prasadam is 1 lakh packets a day and the buffer stock is enough to meet any rise in demand,” he said.