MULUGU: Proving the proverb “make hay while sun shines” correct, the residents of Medaram village have jacked up rents ahead of the biennial Sammakka-Saralamma jatara that attracts lakhs of devotees from across Telangana, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.
Demand for rooms in the village, situated in Tadvai mandal of Mulugu district, will be huge as over one crore people visit the tribal jatara during the festive period that starts from the end of January till February. The rent for one room is expected to be in the range of Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 during the jatara period as there are only 300 houses in Medaram.
Those who cannot afford to pay such an astronomical amount set up tents a distance from the village and trek to Sammakka-Sarakka fair. Pilgrims belonging to tribal communities and lower and middle classes resort to setting up tents in the forest surrounding the village, while others, especially those from the neighbouring states, find no option but to cough up the exorbitant rent for one-room accommodation.
Farmers in villages like Reddygudem, Chalwai, Tadvai and Narlapur also cash in on the golden opportunity and earn some extra income. They have temporarily halted cultivation and are offering their fields on rent to pilgrims to set up tents.
The demand for open spaces in the farmlands is high among shopkeepers and traders who sell liquor and jaggery during the jatara.
Meanwhile, the state government has allocated Rs 75 crore for creation of amenities like temporary toilets, batteries for taps (for drinking water), makeshift changing rooms for women at Jampanna Vagu (stream) and parking facilities for the devotees in the Jatara.