Puri Jagannath temple to conduct check of Mahaprasad amid Tirupati laddus row

Amid a raging controversy around adulteration in laddus at Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati temple, the Odisha government and the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) have decided to implement a regular quality control mechanism of Mahaprasad being served at Puri’s famous Jagannath Temple.
The initiative aims to ensure the purity of Mahaprasad, particularly in terms of ingredients like ghee, which are central to the temple’s sacred offerings.
Announcing the decision on Friday, Odisha Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan said that the move was prompted in the wake of the Tirupati temple laddoos row.
The state government and the SJTA are determined to maintain the highest standards of quality for the Mahaprasad at Srimandir, one of Odisha’s most revered religious sites, he said.
“Some unwanted issues have surfaced at the Tirupati temple, and we do not want such incidents to occur at Puri. To prevent any concerns about adulteration or impurities, we have decided to establish a thorough quality control process”, Harichandan stated.
“All the ingredients used, including ghee, will undergo stringent checks before entering the temple kitchen and again when Mahaprasad is prepared,” he added.
According to officials, a two-stage inspection process will be implemented in order to ensure the purity of Mahaprasad.
In the first stage, all the raw materials used for preparing the offerings will undergo quality checks before they are allowed into the temple’s kitchen.
Once the Mahaprasad is prepared, it will be subject to a final round of inspection, in the second stage, to guarantee that the offerings meet the required standards of purity.
Additionally, there will be food inspectors deployed shortly to oversee the quality control process, minister Harichandan confirmed.
“We have already appointed ex-servicemen to oversee operations at the Ananda Bazaar, where prasadam is sold to devotees. Soon, food inspectors will also be deployed to ensure that no such allegations of impurity, like those we have seen at other temples, are ever made about the Jagannath Temple”, Harichandan said.
The Odisha government has reassured devotees that there is no impurity in Lord Jagannath’s Mahaprasad and that the sanctity of the offering will remain intact. Harichandan emphasised that the state is fully aware of the situation and is taking all necessary steps to uphold the temple’s traditions.
“There is no impurity in Lord Jagannath’s Mahaprasad, and it will never happen. We are fully committed to ensuring the purity of the offerings”, the Law Minister added.
The decision has been widely welcomed by devotees and temple stakeholders, who believe that regular quality checks will further enhance the reputation of the Mahaprasad, which is considered not just food but a sacred blessing from Lord Jagannath.
The Mahaprasad of Lord Jagannath, which holds deep religious significance for millions of devotees, is made from ingredients believed to be blessed by the deity himself. The new quality control measures will ensure that the sacred offerings maintain their revered status, free from any impurities or unwanted elements.
The Tirupati Temple laddus controversy surfaced after Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu claimed last week that substandard ingredients, including animal fat, were found in the laddus served as prasadm at the shrine during the previous Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government.
Referring to a private lab report from Gujarat, Naidu alleged the presence of ‘beef tallow’, ‘lard’ (relating to pig fat) and fish oil in the ghee.
However, former Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy denied the claims, stating that no violation occurred under his regime. Reddy also blamed Naidu for doing “politics in the name of God,” and called the Chief Minister “a pathological and habitual liar”.