TTD hit by ₹54-crore ‘silk’ scam: Polyester shawls passed off as mulberry for a decade

The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), custodian of the world-renowned Tirumala temple, is facing one of its biggest credibility crises yet after an internal vigilance inquiry uncovered a ₹54-crore silk shawl scam that operated undetected for nearly a decade.

The investigation — ordered by the TTD board under Chairman BR Naidu — found that a long-time contractor consistently supplied 100% polyester shawls while billing them as pure mulberry silk, the mandatory specification for ceremonial use.

These shawls are traditionally offered during rituals such as Vedasirvachanam and gifted to major donors, making their authenticity central to temple protocol.

According to vigilance findings, the shawls being supplied were worth around ₹350 each but were billed at ₹1,300, inflating costs year after year and causing a cumulative loss exceeding ₹54 crore. “A shawl that costs about ₹350 was being billed at ₹1,300… We have asked for an ACB probe,” Naidu confirmed.

To verify suspicions, samples were sent for scientific testing to two laboratories, including one under the Central Silk Board (CSB). Both labs conclusively reported that the shawls contained no silk at all, establishing a direct violation of tender norms.

Vigilance officials also flagged the absence of the mandatory silk hologram, required to authenticate genuine mulberry silk.

The probe further revealed that a single firm and its sister companies handled most of the shawl supply during these ten years, raising concerns about monopolisation, opaque vendor selection and weak oversight within the TTD procurement system.

Acting on the report, the TTD Trust Board has cancelled all existing tenders awarded to the firm and has escalated the matter to the Andhra Pradesh Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) for a full-scale criminal investigation. The ACB is expected to examine procurement records, financial trails, possible collusion and accountability lapses across administrative levels.

This scandal adds to a troubling list of recent controversies surrounding TTD, including allegations of adulterated ghee used for the famous laddu prasadam and the Parakamani money-counting theft case. With each revelation intensifying public scrutiny, questions are now being raised about long-term procurement integrity, vendor vetting standards, and systemic oversight failures within one of the world’s wealthiest and most visited religious institutions.