The very popular Balapur Ganesh Laddu broke its own record this year and fetched Rs 24.6 lakh in an open auction held before the start of the idol's immersion procession today.
This was Rs 5.7 lakh more than the Rs. 18.9 lakh it got last year (2021).
The auction for the 21-kg laddu was started at 9:30 am by the Balapur Ganesh Utsav Samithi. The bidding began at Rs 1,116, and some 10 devotees participated in the auction. For the first time, people belonging to both Telugu States took part in the auction. The laddu was eventually bought by Balapur resident V Lakshma Reddy. (There is a norm that if locals bag the laddu in the auction, they may pay the money over the next year, while if any non-locals win, they need to pay on the spot.)
After the completion of the auction formalities, the utsav committee members felicitated Lakshma Reddy and presented him a two-kilogram silver plate along with the laddu. Special prayers were conducted then, and the idol was taken in a mammoth procession for the immersion.
The auction was attended by several politicians, including Education Minister Sabitha Indra Reddy and former MLA Teegala Krishna Reddy. The police made elaborate arrangements for the peaceful conduct of the auction.
The tradition of auctioning the laddu started in 1994 with the formation of the Balapur Ganesh Utsav Committee. In the maiden bidding, the laddu was bought by one Kolanu Mohan Reddy for Rs 450. The bid amount continued to rise year after year, and the Kolanu family dominated with Kolanu Rami Reddy winning the laddu for Rs 17.6 lakh in 2019. As the winners of the laddu have reportedly prospered well, the demand for the laddu has been rising every year.
The funds yielded from the laddu will be spent on the development of the village, temples and welfare activities.