42,000 Staff, Mega Infrastructure Readied As Medaram Braces For 3 Crore Devotees
As the biennial festival enters its final preparatory phase, the remote forest region has been transformed into a massive, round-the-clock administrative hub. State Ministers and senior bureaucrats are camping at Medaram, conducting daily field inspections to ensure that all arrangements are completed well ahead of the main rituals
WARANGAL: With lakhs of pilgrims already beginning to stream in, the Telangana government has thrown its full administrative weight behind the Sammakka–Saralamma Maha Jathara, scheduled to be held from January 28 to 31, gearing up for what is billed as Asia’s largest tribal congregation at Medaram in Tadvai mandal of Mulugu district.
As the biennial festival enters its final preparatory phase, the remote forest region has been transformed into a massive, round-the-clock administrative hub. State Ministers and senior bureaucrats are camping at Medaram, conducting daily field inspections to ensure that all arrangements are completed well ahead of the main rituals.
Nearly three crore devotees are expected to attend the Jathara, prompting the government to put in place a tightly coordinated management system. The entire Medaram area has been divided into eight administrative zones and 42 sectors, each supervised by a district-level officer to ensure swift, decentralised decision-making.
A total of 42,027 personnel from 21 government departments have been deployed, including officials from the police, revenue, health and sanitation wings. To strengthen coordination on the ground and involve local communities, around 2,000 Adivasi youth have been engaged as volunteers to assist with crowd regulation and guide devotees through the temple and ritual areas.
Traffic management remains one of the biggest challenges, given the expected influx of millions of vehicles. Officials said road-related issues at 525 identified points have been rectified to prevent congestion and bottlenecks.
To accommodate vehicles, about 1,418 acres of land have been cleared to create 42 dedicated parking zones. To ensure uninterrupted communication, 60 mobile towers—27 permanent and 33 temporary have been installed. In addition, a dedicated VHF (Very High Frequency) network with 450 sets has been put in place for official communication.
The Mission Bhagiratha department has arranged a round-the-clock supply of purified drinking water through 5,482 newly installed taps. For women devotees taking the traditional holy dip in the Jampanna Vagu stream, 119 dedicated dressing rooms have been constructed. Continuous chlorination is being carried out to maintain water quality and hygiene.
Sanitation arrangements have been scaled up significantly, with 5,700 toilets set up across 285 blocks. A workforce of 5,000 sanitation workers has been deployed in shifts, supported by 18 mechanical sweeping machines, 12 JCBs and 40 Swachh Autos for effective waste management.
To facilitate national and international media coverage, a high-tech media centre has been established at the TTD Kalyana Mandapam. The centre is equipped with 200 Mbps high-speed internet connectivity, 20 advanced computer workstations and dedicated facilities for photo and video transmission, enabling real-time coverage of the Maha Jathara across the globe.