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CBI SIT Details 5-Year Fake Ghee Supply to Tirupati Temple After Arrest of Chemical Trader

Investigators detail a blacklisted supplier using chemicals plus proxy dairies to pass synthetic fat as ghee, prompting scrutiny of TTD oversight.

A wide shot of the main entrance (Maha Dwaram) to the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati, India. The tall, multi-tiered white and silver gopuram stands prominently against the sky. A central mandapam (pavilion) with a large 'U' shaped emblem is visible just below the gopuram. A large, open courtyard or plaza is filled with devotees. Green hills covered in foliage rise behind the complex.
The dairy promoters forged milk procurement and payment records to fake their credibility.
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Overview

  • A CBI‑led SIT remand report says Bhole Baba Organic Dairy supplied about 68 lakh kg of adulterated ghee worth roughly ₹250 crore to TTD from 2019 to 2024 without procuring milk or butter.
  • Delhi-based trader Ajay Kumar Sugandh, named A‑16, was arrested for supplying monoglycerides and acetic‑acid esters used to make synthetic ghee and has been remanded to judicial custody until November 21.
  • The SIT outlines use of palm oil, palm kernel oil and hydrogenated fats with beta‑carotene and ghee essence, plus acetic‑acid esters to inflate Reichert‑Meissl values to clear routine purity checks.
  • Despite being blacklisted in 2022, Bhole Baba allegedly continued supplies via proxy dairies including Vyshnavi, Mal Ganga and AR Dairy with falsified documents and e‑way bills.
  • Four adulterated AR Dairy tankers rejected in July 2024 were allegedly diverted, relabelled near Vyshnavi and returned to TTD in August; the SIT has called former TTD EO A.V. Dharma Reddy for questioning on procurement oversight.