Pilgrimage to the historic Sammakka Sarakka Jatara at Medaram village has undergone a sea change over the decades, particularly in recent times.
The improved road network, publicity and increased faith among the people has resulted in the tribal festival assuming mammoth proportions.
Until almost 22 years ago, the only way devotees could reach Medaram to take part in the biennial jatara was through a bullock cart. In 1998, the government declared the 1,000-year-old festival as a State festival and laid a road with supporting infrastructure while making arrangements for drinking water, electricity, accommodation, parking and, most importantly, security.
Transport options
Slowly but steadily, the number of devotees visiting the jatara site increased and so did the routes. Thousands of people from nearby villages used to walk through thick forests for days on end to reach Medaram. Devotees from other areas like Khammam and Bhadrachalam, and even neighbouring States of Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh used to cross river Godavari to worship the tribal deities. However, the number of people who walk or take bullock carts to Medaram has reduced considerably. Today, devotees have various options of transport, starting from the traditional bullock cart to buses, private vehicles and even helicopters.
Helicopter rides to Medaram began in 2010 from the Mamnoor airport in Warangal. Turbo Aviation Company arranged a helicopter and charged ₹6,000 for a round trip. However, the service did not take off successfully and was eventually called off. Officials tried to revive it in 2014 and 2016 as well but were not successful. The Tourism Department started providing the service in 2018.
Two packages
This year, the Telangana State Tourism Development Corporation in collaboration with Telangana State Aviation Corporation launched the helicopter service from Hyderabad. Flagged off by Tourism Minister on Sunday, it offers two packages to tourists. The first one allows six persons to take the ride at a total cost of ₹1.80 lakh, exclusive of GST. The package includes helicopter charges, a shuttle vehicle from the helipad to the temple and VIP darshan. Another package costing ₹3,000 per person takes one on an aerial tour of Medaram area. One can contact 94003-99999 to book tickets.
