Cardamom used in Aravana Payasam prasadam distributed at Sabarimala is reportedly inedible. According to the report submitted by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to the High Court, the presence of 14 deadly pesticides has been detected. It mentioned the existence of certain pesticides in cardamom that could cause serious diseases and illnesses.
The report contains the test results from the Kochi Spices Board lab. The cardamom was tested at a lab in Kochi as directed by the High Court. According to the instructions of the High Court, the report presented by the Food Safety Commissioner also said that cardamom is not edible.
The court took action on a petition by a company called Ayyappa Spices regarding the distribution of cardamom. In earlier tests conducted at a lab in Thiruvananthapuram, similar unsafe amounts of pesticide were found in the spices.
The cardamom being used is not safe under the Food Safety Act. An earlier inspection conducted by the Devaswom Board at Pampa had reported that the quality was good. The current stock of cardamom will have to be removed entirely, and new cardamom will have to be arranged.
Earlier, S Prakash, the proprietor of Ayyappa Spices, a company that had previously provided cardamom for the Aravana in Sabarimala, petitioned the court. He mentioned doubts about the quality of spices used to prepare the prasadam. Then, the High Court’s Devaswom bench comprising Justices Anil K. Narendran and PG Ajithkumar ordered the report.
According to the petition, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) bought cardamom locally rather than issuing open bids. The TDB had previously invited three tenders, but they were rejected for unclear reasons. While Ayyappa Spices had estimated a price of Rs 1,491 per kg, the petition claims that local cardamom purchases are currently made for Rs 1,558 per kg.
According to reports, the cardamom samples were collected in the presence of the Food Safety commissioner on 23 December. On 11 January Kerala High Court ordered the TDB to immediately stop the distribution of Aravana Payasam made with pesticide-laced cardamom in Sabarimala Temple. The court further directed the same officials to produce Aravana without cardamom.
What guarantees does the court have about the rest of the ingredients? There have been other mismanagement and apathy regarding Aravana, but they pale compared to the current issue.
Astonishingly, the authorities and our system delayed the proceedings and fed Ayyappa devotees and their Hindu families pesticide-laced Aranava till now. Should they not be jailed and punished for criminal negligence? Devaswom officials and politicians certainly indulged in corruption. Was it just greed for money, or was there a hidden agenda?
The perpetrators knew perfectly well that Abrahamics would not touch Hindu prasadam. It meant that what they did would affect only Hindus. Like the alleged sale of rotten meat to non-Muslims in halal hotels, this too shall get passed off as a one-off incident.
With just a week to go before the Sabarimala season ends, this means that the communists have well and truly messed up the famous prasadam this year. How many have they slowly poisoned?
Though painful, those who have purchased Aravana and still have it at home are requested to dispose of it.
