The event, held once in two years, is also termed the tribal Kumbh Mela as the scenes here are similar to the religious mega-fairs held on the banks of the Ganges and the Narmada rivers. The crowd during the four-day fair was estimated to reach eight million.
According to official the fair began with the tribal priests bringing a statue of goddess Sarakka - also known as Saralamma - after prayers at Kanneboinapalli village, eight km from Medaram.
The devotees walked behind in the path trod by Sarakka in the belief it will bring happiness and prosperity to them.
Late in the evening the deity was seated on 'gadde' (pedestal), as tens of thousands of devotees vied with each other to touch the pedestal, swaying deliriously to music.
Many in the crowd also took a holy dip in the Jampanna Vagu, a rivulet, before offering obeisance to the deity. Many women believe a bath in the rivulet will get them good husbands.
As the unmarried girls took the dip, priests blessed them. 'Shiva sathis' (wives of Lord Shiva) applied turmeric all over the bodies of the girls and sprinkled vermilion on them.
The police had a tough time controlling the crowds, as pilgrims walked for over 12 km to reach Medaram. Vehicles on Hanamkonda-Pasra Road were stranded for over 10 km.
The narrow roads and lack of basic amenities added to the woes of the pilgrims. Though the district administration arranged 36,000 makeshift toilets, they were not enough.
The pilgrims also complained of drinking water shortage.
The crowds reached their peak when Sammakka, mother of Sarakka, was brought to the altar from Chilkalagutta and placed on the 'gadde'.
It is believed that the goddesses visit the tribals during the 'jatra'. The devotees, many high on liquor, weigh themselves against jaggery and offer it to the deities. They also sacrifice goats and chicken.
Traders do brisk business as devotees buy massive jaggery blocks, thousands of goats and chicken, vermilion caskets and bottles of liquor.
Legend has it that about 1,000 years ago, a group of Koya tribals passing through the region found a little girl playing with a tigress. The head of the tribe adopted and named her Sammakka. She married the headman of a neighbouring village and Sarakka was born to them.
Sammakka stood up against the Kakatiyas - who ruled Andhra from Warangal between 1000 and 1380 AD - when they tried to collect taxes from Koyas despite a severe drought. The rulers killed many tribals and Sammakka fought against them to avenge the killings.
During the fighting, Samakka and her daughter Sarakka were injured. She told the Koyas that as long as they remembered her, she would protect them. She cursed the Kakatiya dynasty that they would perish and disappeared into the forest.
Koyas searched for their queen but found only her bangles and the pugmarks of a tigress. Later, Muslim invaders destroyed the Kakatiya dynasty. Since then the tribals have been holding the fair in memory of the two women, whom they revere as goddesses.
