Trust is important. Evidence makes trust stronger.
Investigators, scientists, public bodies, and consumer groups have examined products that devotees use every day. Their findings do not mean that every product is unsafe. They do show why clear labels, traceable makers, and category-based testing matter.
Ghee: what the Tirupati chargesheet alleged
In January 2026, a CBI-led Special Investigation Team filed a chargesheet about ghee supplied to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams from 2019 to 2024. Reporting on the filing says about 60 lakh kg of material sold as ghee contained vegetable oils and chemical additives instead of milk fat.
The chargesheet did not confirm the earlier claim that animal fat was used. It is also a legal filing, not a final court judgment. Those limits are important.
The case still offers a practical lesson. A label and an invoice are not enough when the product is hard to judge by sight or smell. Buyers need supplier records, realistic pricing, representative samples, and suitable laboratory checks.
A separate LocalCircles online survey in July 2026 asked 18,207 respondents about the ghee their household buys. Only 38% said they were very confident about its purity and quality. This is a measure of confidence, not a laboratory result.
What you can do: buy from a traceable maker, check the pack for required details, and be careful when a product is priced far below normal market prices.
Sindoor: lead in tested samples
A 2017 study tested 118 sindoor samples. Twenty-three were bought in India and 95 were bought in New Jersey. Lead at or above 1 microgram per gram was found in 78.3% of the India samples and 83.2% of the US samples.
Some samples contained extremely high levels of lead. The study does not prove that every sindoor product contains lead, but it does show that appearance alone cannot confirm safety.
The World Health Organization says there is no known safe level of lead exposure. Children are especially vulnerable.
What you can do: choose a maker that states its colourants and provides useful safety or test information. Keep sindoor away from children unless you know it is suitable for their use.
Agarbatti: a new Indian standard
In December 2025, the Bureau of Indian Standards released IS 19412:2025 for agarbatti. It covers raw materials, burn quality, fragrance, and chemical parameters. Products that claim conformity must not contain the listed insecticides and fragrance chemicals.
BIS product certification is generally voluntary unless the government issues a Quality Control Order for a category. The standard is still useful because it gives makers and buyers a shared reference for product quality and safety.
What you can do: ask for ingredient and conformity information, use incense in a ventilated space, and avoid products that make broad safety claims without evidence.
Turmeric: colour is not proof of quality
Turmeric is used in kitchens and puja rooms. A 2024 study tested 356 turmeric samples from markets in India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. Fourteen percent exceeded 2 micrograms of lead per gram. The chemistry in the highest samples pointed to lead chromate, which can make turmeric look brighter.
What you can do: do not treat very bright colour as proof of quality. Whole roots, traceable brands, and suitable test records can offer more useful information.
Why Shastra Life publishes this
The aim is not to create fear. It is to explain why a careful review needs more than marketing. Different products need different checks. Food, powders, incense, metals, and natural materials do not share one simple test.
The Shastra Life process brings together three questions:
- Who made this product, and can its origin be traced?
- Which safety and quality checks fit this category?
- Does its sacred claim match the relevant text and tradition?
A devotee should not need laboratory equipment to understand a label. Clear standards should do that work before the product earns a seal.
Sources
- Tirupati chargesheet reporting: Indian Express
- Ghee confidence survey: LocalCircles
- Sindoor lead study: PubMed record
- Lead and health: World Health Organization
- Agarbatti standard: Press Information Bureau
- BIS certification rules: Bureau of Indian Standards
- Turmeric study: Science of the Total Environment
- TTD laboratory release: Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams