Hyderabad (Telangana):Telangana will be immersed in festivities, as the state gears up for the Sammakka-Saralamma Jatara, popularly known as Medaram Jatara, which will be held between February 5 and 8.
The priests hail from the tribal families The biennial Jatara is held at Medaram in Mulugu District. It is believed that after Kumbh Mela, the Medaram Jatara attracts the largest number of devotees in the country.
With more that one crore devotees expected to attend, thejatara is being tipped as Asia's biggest Tribal congregation.
Thejatara commemorates the fight of a mother and daughter, Sammakka and Saralamma, with the reigning rulers against an unjust law.
The Jatara
The grand opening of the Jatara starts on February 5, with the deities of Saralamma, Pagididdaraju and Govindaraju being brought in from Kannepalli on to the podium. On the second day, the deity of Sammakka which resides in the form of a Kumkum Bharine will be brought on to the podium.
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On the third day, all the deities are displayed for darshan for thousands of pilgrims. Finally, on the fourth day, the deities are moved back to their original location. This is followed by the return rituals on the next Wednesday (February 12).
The priests hail from the tribal families, as is the tradition, which happens to be the speciality of the Jatara. The lakhs of devotees, who descend at Medaram from different states across India, bring jaggery as offerings to the deities.
TSRTC to operate special buses
In wake of the massive footfall, the Telangana RTC will operate four thousand buses to the Jatara. There are about 500 special buses plying from Rangareddy Region to Medaram. The special buses began operating on February 2 and will continue till February 8.
Two choppers on demand
The Chief Minister of Telangana, K Chandrasekhar Rao announced that two helicopters will be available in Hyderabad from February 5 to 9, for the Secretary-General of the government and other senior officials like the DGP to visit the camp and review the situation from time to time.
Guest House set up
For the comfort of all the pilgrims visiting Medaram, the state-owned Haritha Resorts has set up a guest house in the area. The resort was opened by Tourism Minister Srinivas Goud and was built under the aegis of the Panchayati Raj Minister Errabelli Dayakara Rao. The cost of the setting up of the facility has been budgeted at Rs 9.37 crores.
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24-hour medical services
The District Medical and Health Department is ready to provide 24-hour medical services to the devotees who come here in large numbers. The Government has allocated a budget of Rs 1.46 crore for medical services. The main medical camp with 50 beds has been set up at TTD Kalyana Mandapam near Gaddela and 60 camps have been set up in the surrounding areas of Jampannavagu and Chilakalagutta. A total of 130 doctors and 900 medical staff will serve in the camps. Arrangements have been made to provide medical services and surgeries for pregnant women with general medical care. Around 33 ambulances will be kept ready for any sort of emergency.
Exhibits of Tribal Lifestyle
The tribal welfare department is also setting up the exhibits of surrounding tribal areas as a special attraction. Arrangements have been made to organise cultural activities. Today's generation, which is not familiar with the traditions of tribals will be exposed to the beauty of tribal lifestyles.
Plastic-free Mela
The Sarpanch of Medaram, Chidam Baburao has made a commitment to make the Medaram Mela a plastic-free celebration. Sarpanch Babu Rao visited each of the stalls and implored to the vendors to not use plastic. He also oversaw the putting-up of banners requesting devotees to avoid using plastic.
Video Analytics Policy
What makes this jatara even more special, is that artificial intelligence will be used for the first time in a large-scale during the Jatara. Devotees' congestion will be controlled through video analytics, with missing people to be identified through CCTV cameras.
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