MULUGU: Mulugu is gearing up for Asia’s biggest tribal festival — and so are the rental rates.
With 50 days still remaining for the Sammakka–Saralamma Jatara, land prices in the tiny village of Medaram and its neighbouring areas are soaring by the day, leaving traders stunned.
Private landowners are demanding between `10,000 and `15,000 per square yard for plots along the main approach routes, the temple road, bus stand stretch, Japannavagu and Reddy Gudem, all locations expected to be packed with lakhs of pilgrims round the clock during the jatara.
Tribals and non-tribal farmers in Reddygudem, Chalwai, Tadvai, Medaram and Narlapur have decided to skip cultivation this season altogether, converting farmland into commercial real estate overnight.
Rentals have doubled since November — from `10,000 per square yard a month ago to `15,000 per square yard due to fierce demand from traders.
As the biannual Sammakka–Saralamma Jatara begins attracting pilgrims from December itself, businessmen are racing to secure prime spaces to set up their shops.
Shopkeepers, distributors and wholesalers of alcohol, coconuts and jaggery are approaching landowners early, hoping to set up shop for at least a month.
When TNIE contacted Mulugu District Collector Divakara TS, he said there are 20 to 25 shops under Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) control around the temple.
“The shops will be allocated on an auction basis to tribals. They establish shops for the sale of jaggery and coconuts. Private landowners are free to rent out their land and decide their rental rates,” the district collector said.