Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has made a significant move to uphold the quality and purity of Mahaprasad and other offerings at the esteemed Sri Jagannath Temple in Puri. In light of recent allegations regarding the use of pig and beef fat in Tirupati laddu in Andhra Pradesh, the Odisha government has decided to appoint a dedicated Food Inspector to oversee the preparation of Mahaprasad, dry Bhog, and the ghee used in Diyas.
Speaking to the media, Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan announced that the department has been asked to appoint a dedicated food inspector to assess the quality of the Prasad and other ingredients used in the Bhogha and related offerings.
“We are working to ensure that pure ghee is used for preparing Prasad and lighting diyas. Our goal is to guarantee that only the highest quality products are utilised in the temple. The department is taking this issue very seriously,” he added.
The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) will provide guidelines concerning the quality of ghee and edible items within the temple. The temple administration is also creating awareness among servitors.
The Odisha government’s decision follows controversy over the quality of ladoos prepared at the Sri Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati. There were allegations that animal fat and adulterated ghee were used in making the ladoos offered as Prasad at the Tirumala temple.
It is important to note that on September 24th, Puri Collector Siddharth Shankar Swain indicated that the administration has decided to evaluate the quality of the ghee used in the preparation of various bhogas at Srimandir.
“While no allegations have been made regarding the quality of ghee used in preparing Kotha Bhoga (Prasad for deities) and Barati Bhoga (Prasad on order) at Srimandir, we will still assess the ghee’s standards. Given the potential for adulteration, we plan to consult with Omfed, the supplier of ghee to Srimandir, as well as the Suara and Mahasuara Nijog of the temple to ensure the ghee meets required standards,” said the Puri Collector.
It should be noted that questions occasionally arise regarding the quality of ghee used for lighting diyas in the temple. This concern was first raised a few years ago, prompting the Srimandir administration to issue a guideline stating that lamps should only be lit with ghee prepared by the Odisha State Cooperative Milk Producer Federation (OMFED). This directive followed accusations against diya shops within the temple for selling diyas made with adulterated ghee. In response, a special OMFED shop was established inside the temple. Initially, some shopkeepers were fined for non-compliance with this guideline, and quality checks were conducted regularly for a time. However, this process was eventually discontinued, leading to renewed accusations against many shopkeepers for using low-quality ghee in their diyas. In response, the state government has now mandated quality checks on the ghee used in diyas, as well as in Mahaprasad. This decision is being welcomed by the devotees of Bhagwan Jagannath.
