Hyderabad, September 25, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Hyderabad’s famous Balapur Ganesh laddu was auctioned for a record Rs 39 lakh on Friday, surpassing last year’s bid of Rs 35 lakh.
City-based entrepreneur S. Praneet Reddy won the open auction for the 21-kg laddu, held before the traditional Ganesh immersion procession from Balapur on the southern fringes of Hyderabad.
Eight people participated in this year’s auction, with devotees and bidders associating the laddu with good luck and prosperity.
The annual auction marks the beginning of the Ganesh immersion procession, which passes through various parts of Hyderabad before reaching Hussain Sagar Lake.
The Balapur laddu has a significant place in the city’s Ganesh festivities. According to the organisers, the Balapur Ganesh celebrations have a history of 45 years, while the tradition of auctioning the laddu began in 1994.
The Balapur Ganesh Utsav Samithi said the laddu fetched Rs 450 in the first auction in 1994. Kolanu Mohan Reddy bought it that year and went on to win the auction for five consecutive years. His claims of prosperity after winning the bid helped increase the popularity of the tradition.
Since then, the laddu has grown in popularity as well as value, with businessmen and politicians participating in the annual bidding amid the belief that winning it brings prosperity.
Auction winners traditionally distribute pieces of the laddu among family and friends, while some also sprinkle its remnants in their agricultural fields, business establishments and homes.
The organisers had restricted the auction to local residents for 15 years before opening it to people from other areas.
The Balapur Ganesh Utsav Samithi has conducted the auction 31 times so far. The auction was not held in 2020 due to the Covid-19 situation. The organisers had instead presented the laddu to then Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao.
In 2024, Kolanu Shankar Reddy bought the Balapur laddu for Rs 30.01 lakh, while Lingala Dasarath Goud emerged as the successful bidder last year with a bid of Rs 35 lakh.
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