All roads lead to Medaram

Medaram (Mulugu): Massive crowds, frenzied devotion, electric atmosphere and what not? The Sammakka-Saralamma jatara, the biennial razzamatazz of the aboriginals that is often touted as Telangana Kumbh Mela is back at Medaram. With the crowds already starting to mill in, Medaram is all set for the traditional Wednesday-start.

It's the only point of time when the tiny Medaram village turns into a town. For the last fortnight or so, Medaram is teaming up with devotees. The pre-jatara rush which according to a conservative estimate has already cross­ed 30 lakh, the locals say.

If this rush was an indication, the overall footfall of the devotee is well set to cross one crore in the next four days – from Wednesday to Saturday, the main jatara days.

The jatara sets off with a ritual at Kannepally, a couple of kilometers from the altars (locally known as gaddelu) of the deities, on Wednesday which happens to be the Magha Sudha Pournami.

The tribal priests take out the presiding deity - Saralamma – in the form of vermillion in a Kumkum bharani (casket) and turmeric in a procession to Medaram altars where they install Her.

During the procession, people suffering from prolonged health issues, especially the issueless women seeking the deity's blessings to fulfill their ambition were seen rolling on the road with folded hands so that the priests who were heading to the altars trudge over them.

It's called as 'varam pattadam'. No matter, how big or small, rich or poor, tribal or non-tribal all they urge the priests to tramp them to pay their obeisance to deities.

Many a devotee can be seen going into a trance until the deity was installed at the altar. The procession which starts at around 4 pm amid drumbeats ends at 9 pm with the priests reaching the altars crossing the Jampannavagu stream.

Meanwhile, the tribal priests bring Saralamma's husband Govindarajulu from Kondai under Eturunagaram mandal and place Him alongside the deity. On the other hand, the administration has made elaborate arrangements for the peaceful conduct of jatara.

For the safety and security of the devotees, the administration has deployed 10,000 policemen in addition to aerial surveillance through drones and 400 closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras.

The administration is set to use hi tech gadgetry such as crowd detection cameras and drone surveillance to manage crowds during the jatara. The State-owned RTC is running 4,000 buses from all corners of the State for the convenience of the devotees.

The South Central Railway (SCR) is also operating 20 special trains in the Hyderabad- Kazipet- Sirpur Kagaznagar route from February 4 to 8. On the other hand, the Telangana State Tourism Development Corporation (TSTDC) in collaboration with Telangana State Aviation Corporation has launched chopper services between Hyderabad and Medaram.

The package which costs Rs 1.8 lakh exclusive of GST for six persons is also includes a vehicle from helipad to the temple and VIP Darshan. The devotees can also have an aerial trip around the Medaram jatara by paying Rs 3,000.