All eyes are set on the Balapur Ganesh laddu auction to be held on today, ahead of the immersion, in front of the gigantic Ganesh idol installed at Balapur village of Balapur mandal in Rangareddy district of Telangana. It is located five kilometers away from Chandrayangutta in south Hyderabad.
The Ganesh laddu auction attracts huge crowds from across the city and nationwide media personnel who come to Balapur to cover the event that has been taking place for at least three decades.
Last year, the laddu was auctioned for Rs 24.60 lakh, which was Rs 5.70 lakh more than 2021.This time, the laddu is expected to set a new record, said Balapur Ganesh Utsav Samithi president Kallem Niranjan Reddy.
In 2022, a local farmer Vangeti Lakshma Reddy bought the laddu for Rs 24.60 lakh in an open auction.
The auctioning of Ganesh laddu dates back to 1994. A local farmer Kolan Mohan Reddy bought it for Rs 450. Mohan Reddy after distributing laddu prasadam to his family and locals sprinkled it in his farm and the yield went up.
Interestingly, the same family had participated in most of the auctions and registered success on eight occasions.
The money collected through the auction is used for various development activities in the villages. Even Muslims have participated in the bidding on more than three occasions.
The money was used to renovate an old temple in the village at a cost of Rs 21 lakh and a shed was put up at a local government school with Rs 1.45 lakh. The upset price is fixed by the committee and it remains the same every year.
Auction this year will be of high voltage as few politicians are expected to participate and compete to consolidate their influence in the community.
Teegala Krishna Reddy, former Hyderabad Mayor and former MLA participated in the auction earlier.
