Endowment department issues guidelines on prasadam for 15 major temples in state

BENGALURU: Amid the controversy over adulteration of the Tirupati laddu prasadam with animal fat, the Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowment Department in Karnataka has issued special guidelines on prasadam for 15 major temples in the state.

The guidelines specifically focus on daily laddu and sweet pongal distribution. The department has made it mandatory for all temples to use Nandini ghee and conduct quality tests on prasadam.

According to Dr Venkatesh M V,  Commissioner for Hindu Religious Institution and Charitable Endowment Department, there are 206 Category-A temples, 193 Category-B and 34,266 Category-C temples in the state.

“We have issued several guidelines for ensuring the quality of prasadam at the temples. The precautions have been taken for the safety of devotees.  The officials should make surprise visits. Instruction has been given to submit a quality report every month. Chemical analysis and physical analysis of samples or ingredients should be conducted”, he added.

The major 15 temples are:

1. Chamundeshwari Temple – Mysuru

2. Kukke Subrahmanya Temple

3. DurgaParameshwari – Kateel

4. Chikkatirupathi – Kolar

5. Mandarthi Temple – Udupi

6. Ghati Subramanya – Doddaballapur

7. Male Mahadeshwara Temple – Chamarajanagar

8. RanganathaSwamy Temple – Sriranga Town

9. Nimishamba Temple – Srirangapatna

10. Nanjundeshwara Temple – Nanjangudu

11. Renuka Yellamma Temple – Saundatti, Belagavi

12. Dodda Ganesha Temple – Basavanagudi, Bengaluru

13. Venugopala Swamy Temple – Malleswaram, Bengaluru

The guidelines issued by the Endowment Department include: Conducting quality tests on ingredients before preparing prasadam daily; Inspecting and certifying the quality of daily ingredients used for prasadam preparation with local health authorities; Testing and ensuring the quality of oil used; mandatory testing for ground flour, jaggery, sugar, wheat, grapes, cardamom, and other ingredients; maintaining cleanliness at the prasadam preparation centre; testing food ingredients before storing them in the warehouse; regularly conducting quality tests on food ingredients.

These guidelines are aimed at ensuring the quality, safety and hygiene of prasadam prepared in temples, protecting the health and well-being of devotees, the department said.