Overview
- The four-day Sammakka–Saralamma festival opened on January 28 after pre-festival rites, as crowds surged and a Maori kapa haka delegation’s earlier visit underscored an Indo–New Zealand cultural exchange.
- Telangana invested roughly ₹251 crore in permanent works, including a rebuilt gaddelu complex costing about ₹101 crore that was inaugurated on January 19.
- Authorities organized operations into eight zones and 42 sectors with about 42,000 personnel, deploying 4,000 TG‑RTC buses, 28 special trains, expanded parking and more than 5,000 health staff.
- Police introduced AI-enabled drone monitoring and a QR-code geo‑tag system to quickly reunite missing children and elderly under the TG‑QUEST project.
- Leaders urged a plastic‑free pilgrimage to safeguard the Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary, calling for leaf plates and cloth bags during the mass gathering.