Pilgrims of the Sammakka-Saralamma jatara were caught in a massive traffic jam at Medaram in Mulugu district on Saturday. | Photo credit: NAGARA GOPAL
Amid huge crowds of devotees, tribal deities Sammakka and Saralamma were ceremoniously taken back to their abodes as part of Vana Pravesham on Saturday evening, marking the end of the four-day biennial Sammakka-Saralamma Maha Jatara that attracted millions of devotees.
According to the traditional deity, Sammoka was taken to the sacred greenery of the chilakalagutta hill while saralamma returned to her temple in Kanepalli village. The ritual procession also includes pagiddaraju, which is taken by koya priests to ponugondlu village in kothaguda mandar and govindaraju to kondai village in eturnagaram mandal. Minister Seethkka and several other leaders witnessed the event.
Several senior officials and dignitaries visited the shrine and offered prayers before the ritual. Principal Secretary Women Development and Child Welfare Anita Ramachandran, District Collector TS Divakara and his family members, Superintendent of Police (SP) Sudhir R. Kekan and several senior officials attended prayers before the deities left for Vana Pravesham.
Traffic jam
Pilgrims try to offer bangaram (jaggery) before the tribal deities return to their Vana Pravesham, on the last day of the 4-day Sammakka Saralamma Jatara, in Medaram, Mulugu district, on Saturday. | Photo credit: NAGARA GOPAL
Meanwhile, the devotees faced severe hardship due to traffic jams on the routes leading to Medaram. Vehicular movement stopped for several hours between Pasra-Tadvai-Medaram route from Friday night to Saturday morning. Many vehicles, including those carrying essential supplies such as milk, were stuck.
Some devotees alleged that there was poor traffic management despite heavy police deployment. “I started at midnight and reached Medaram only at 11.30 pm the next day,” said Bharat, a resident of Hanamkonda. An official of a government corporation is allegedly misusing the lanes of essential service vehicles, which is contributing to congestion.
Others have pointed out that the expansion of roads and the use of modern technology, including artificial intelligence, have failed to facilitate traffic due to shortcomings in ground control. The situation improved slightly by Saturday afternoon due to intervention and close monitoring by senior IPS officers.
However, a large number of devotees were stranded in Medaram for several hours as Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (RTC) buses were not available to take them back, allegedly due to poor coordination between the RTC and other departments. Sources said the distribution of VIP and VVIP passes in thousands to members of the public, senior bureaucrats and others led to traffic jams as many of them arrived in convoys of vehicles.
Published – 31 Jan 2026 19:39 IST
