HYDERABAD: The popular Balapur Ganesh
laddu would be all the more sweeter now with an all-time high auction price of Rs 16.60 lakh. On Sunday, T Srinivas Gupta, Balapur Mandal Arya Vaisya Sangham president, offered the highest bid in the 25-year auction history for the 21-kg treat. Last year, the laddu had fetched Rs 15.60 lakh.
Meanwhile, the Vinayak Nagar (
Film Nagar) laddu fetched the second highest price in the Sunday’s auctions with a bid of Rs 15.01 lakh. The auction (known as Bangaram laddu) is an annual tradition on the day of Ganesh immersion in Balapur.
The auction began at 10.15am and was over in 20 minutes. It began with a price of Rs 1,116 by Balapur Ganesh Utsav Samithi. The two keen bidders were Srinivas Gupta and Kolan Ram
Reddy. A few aspirants, however, were upset. They said the winner was declared even as they tried to make a higher offer. As per the rules, if a local won the auction, he has to pay the amount on the spot. Gutpa paid Rs 16.60 lakh in cash to the organizers.
“I have been waiting for long to buy the laddu. My dream has come true. I will soon distribute the laddu to all my near and dear ones,“ said Srinivas Gupta.
The laddu was donated by Uma Maheswara Rao, a sweetmeat maker in
Tapeswaram. Rao has been the donor for nearly a decade. The Balapur laddu auction began in 1994 with a meagre winning bid of Rs 450.
The popular Balapur Ganesh laddu would be all the more sweeter now with an all-time high auction price of Rs 16.60 lakh
