TTD Exposes ₹54-Crore ‘Silk Dupatta Scam’
Decade-long fraud uncovered; contractor supplied polyester instead of pure mulberry silk
- Vigilance probe reveals ₹54 crore loss to TTD due to fake polyester dupattas
- Contractor billed low-cost shawls as premium mulberry silk for 10 years
- Scientific tests and missing silk holograms confirm large-scale fraud
- TTD cancels tenders, refers case to ACB amid rising procurement scandals
GG News Bureau
Tirupati, 10th Dec: The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), the body managing the renowned Tirumala temple, has uncovered a massive ₹54-crore silk ‘dupatta scam’ spanning an entire decade from 2015 to 2025. The revelation emerged from an internal vigilance inquiry ordered after the TTD board, chaired by BR Naidu, flagged discrepancies in silk procurement.
According to the probe, a contractor consistently supplied 100% polyester dupattas while billing them as pure mulberry silk, the material mandated in tender specifications. These dupattas are presented to major donors and used in sacred rituals such as Vedasirvachanam, making authenticity crucial.
TTD officials said the contractor charged nearly four times the cost of a polyester shawl. “A shawl costing about ₹350 was being billed at ₹1,300. The total supplies amount to more than ₹50 crore. We have asked for an ACB probe,” Chairman BR Naidu stated.
Samples of the dupattas were sent to two laboratories, including one under the Central Silk Board (CSB). Scientific analysis confirmed that the material was polyester, in direct violation of tender norms. Vigilance officers also found that the mandatory silk hologram—used to authenticate genuine silk—was missing from the samples.
The investigation further revealed that a single firm and its sister concerns dominated cloth supply to the TTD over the ten-year period, raising serious concerns about unchecked vendor influence and weak procurement oversight.
Acting on the vigilance report, the TTD Trust Board has cancelled all existing tenders with the firm and referred the entire case to the State Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) for a full-fledged criminal investigation.
The dupatta scam adds to a growing list of controversies that have plagued one of the world’s richest religious institutions. Recent procurement issues—including alleged adulteration of ghee used in the iconic laddu prasadam and the Parakamani (hundi money counting) theft case—have put TTD’s internal controls under intense scrutiny.
The recurring scandals have triggered calls for systemic reforms, stronger vendor vetting, and a complete overhaul of procurement mechanisms to restore public trust in the temple’s administration.
