KMF supplied 62% of TTD’s total ghee requirement, allegations of preferential treatment to Indapur dairy completely false: TTD chairman BR Naidu

VIJAYAWADA: Amid the ongoing political slugfest between the TDP-led NDA alliance and the YSRCP over the supply of ghee by Maharashtra-based Indapur Dairy to the Tirupati trust, TTD chairman B R Naidu clarified that the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) remained TTD’s largest ghee supplier, meeting 62% of the trust’s total requirement.

He dismissed the YSRCP’s allegations that Indapur Dairy bags contracts only when the TDP comes to power in the state. B R Naidu released ghee procurement data for 2024–25 to substantiate his claims. According to the TTD chief, following a series of complaints and concerns expressed by millions of devotees of Lord Venkateswara across the globe over the deteriorating quality of the sacred Tirupati laddu — allegedly due to the procurement of adulterated ghee during the erstwhile YSRCP regime — the newly constituted TTD trust board passed a series of resolutions to procure pure cow ghee from reputed dairies across the country in a transparent manner, strictly adhering to FSSAI specifications. “Ever since the revised ghee procurement guidelines came into effect, seven rounds of tenders were called for ghee procurement. Seven reputed national dairies — including KMF, Mother Dairy, Indapur Dairy, Sangam Dairy, Premier Agri Foods, Kolhapur Dairy and Govind Milk — participated in the tender process,” B R Naidu said. “While KMF bagged four out of the seven tenders to supply 60 lakh kg of ghee, the KMF management expressed difficulties and agreed to supply only 10 lakh kg out of the 20 lakh kg tender quantity in the tender floated in October last year.

Overall, KMF supplied 50 lakh kg of ghee, accounting for 62% of the total ghee procured by TTD between 2024 and 2025,” the TTD chief noted. B R Naidu further clarified that Indapur Dairy qualified in only two of the seven tenders floated by TTD and secured orders to supply 10 lakh kg of ghee. Dismissing allegations that Indapur Dairy participates in TTD ghee supply tenders only during the TDP regime, he said the dairy took part in the tender process about six times between 2019 and 2024 during the YSRCP regime. Rejecting allegations of an abnormal spike in ghee prices procured by the Tirupati trust, the TTD chairman underlined that ghee prices fluctuate based on multiple parameters. He asserted that the rates at which TTD procured ghee from national dairies were in line with the indicative prices of the National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India (NCDFI) and the Indian Dairy Association (IDA).