Kolkata’s Sreebhumi Durga Puja recreates Tirupati temple; to distribute one lakh ‘pure ghee’ laddus

Sreebhumi Sporting Club recreates Tirupati Devasthanam for Durga Puja, distributing one lakh laddus as prasad with pure ghee.

Sreebhumi Sporting Club, which organises one of the biggest themed Durga Pujas in Kolkata, has recreated the famous Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam this year and has announced the distribution of one lakh laddus as prasad.

This follows the recent controversy surrounding the alleged use of animal fat in Tirupati laddus.

According to Dibyendu Kishore Goswami, general secretary of Sreebhumi Sporting Club Durga Puja, as many as 15 cooks from the original Tirupati temple are being brought to Kolkata to make the laddus in the authentic style, but with pure ghee.

“The theme of our Durga Puja has always been to recreate an iconic monument or place of worship from India and around the world,” Mr. Goswami told The Hindu. “Tirupati is incredibly well-renowned. Our decision to make Tirupati our theme this year and to recreate its iconic prasad is unrelated to the controversy.”

He further added their Durga Puja is decided many months in advance, and remaking and distributing the prasad of the temple being recreated has been a tradition among Sreebhumi’s organisers. 

“In earlier years, we recreated the Badrinath Temple and Puri’s Jagannath Temple as well. Even then, we made arrangements to make the respective prasad that these temples are known for, and distribute it among devotees,” Mr. Goswami said.

However, he clarified that despite the controversy around the use of animal fat in laddus at Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, the laddus at Sreebhumi would be made with pure ghee only.