Use Nandini Ghee at all 34,000 temples: Karnataka order amid Tirupati row

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, September 21, 2024: Amid controversy over the use of animal fat in ghee at the Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh, the Karnataka government on Friday issued a directive mandating the use of Nandini brand ghee in all 34,000 temples that come under the state’s temple management body.

The Karnataka government’s new directive requires that all temples under its jurisdiction use only Nandini ghee, produced by the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF), for temple rituals, including lighting lamps, preparing ’prasada’, and in the ’Dasoha Bhavans’ - places where devotees are served food. The official circular stressed that temple staff must ensure that the quality of ’prasada’ is never compromised.

"In all the notified temples under the Religious Endowment Department of Karnataka State, it has been directed to use only Nandini Ghee for services, lamps, and preparation of all types of prasada and in Dasoha Bhavan. It has been suggested to maintain the quality in the prasada prepared in the temples," the circular reads.

This directive comes in the wake of a larger controversy surrounding the alleged use of animal fat in ghee in the preparation of laddoos at the famous Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirupati, managed by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD). The controversy first erupted earlier this week when Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu raised concerns over the quality of the ghee used at the temple, claiming that samples had tested positive for lard and other animal fats.