Selected State >>MANIPUR
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Manipur is a state in the northeast of India. It shares an international boundary with Burma. Most of Manipur's people are tribal farmers. |
| People & Government | Economy |
| Transportation & Communication | Land |
| Climate | History |
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The
majority of Manipuris are tribal people, with a mixture of Burmese and
Mongolian influences. Most
of the population in the valleys are Hindus, worshippers of Vishnu.
They belong to the Meithei tribe, related to the Shans of
Burma. There are about 30
other tribes who make up about one-third of the population, most of
whom are Christians. The
Manipuris have a reputation for being great warriors, who still
practise their martial art skills.
The game of polo is said to have originated in Manipur.
The state language is Manipuri.
Manipur has a university and an agricultural college. Manipur has two elected members in the Lok Sabha (lower house) and one nominated representative in the Rajya Sabah (upper house) of the Indian national parliament. The state legislative assembly has 60 members, 19 of them from reserved tribal constituencies. |
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More
than 70 per cent of the state's population live in rural areas.
Most of them work in subsistence farming, growing food for
their own needs. Rice
is the main crop. Maize
is grown in the foothills. The manufacture of bicycles and television sets account for a large proportion of Manipur's industrial workforce. Handloom weaving is a large industry, and forest products and local stoneware production are also important. There is a sugar factory at Wanghal. |
Transportation and Communication
| Daily Indian Airlines flights connect Imphal, the state capital, to Delhi, the Indian national capital. They travel by way of Silchar and Gauhati in Assam, and via Calcutta in West Bengal. The state has no railways. Dimapur on the Northern Frontier Railway is the nearest railhead for Manipur. The road network is very limited. Because of the sparse population of the area, places of even modest size are quite distant from each other. |
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Manipur
lies about 700 kilometres northeast of Calcutta.
It has an international border on its east side with Burma
and state borders with Nagaland to the north, Assam to the west, and
Mizoram to the south. Much
of Manipur is above 200 metres, but the heart of the populated area
is a low-lying basin. In
its centre is the reedy Lake Loktak, into which several river
valleys drain. There
are several large lakes in the central area where the rivers drain
southward. They are used for fishing and duck shooting, as well as for
boat races. Manipur
is still a forested state. Bamboo and teak are common, but magnolia and oak are also
widespread. Blue
poppies, primroses, and rhododendrons are common flowers.
Elephants, rhinoceroses, and tigers are all found in the
state. |
| Winter temperatures at Imphal fall to a minimum of 4 °C at night. Daytime temperatures, even in January, reach over 21 °C. The average summer maximum, experienced from April to September, is 29 °C. The annual rainfall at Imphal is about 40 centimetres, but is more elsewhere in the state. |
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Some
historians believe Imphal was founded about 2,000 years ago.
Imphal derives its name from Yumpham meaning homestead and is
one of the oldest state capitals in India.
Manipur has always been independent of its neighbouring
tribal areas. There are
few major historical landmarks. The most notable is the Bishnupur Temple, nearly 30
kilometres from Imphal, which was built in 1467 during the reign of
King Kiyamba. The
narrow bricks used in its construction reflect the influence of the
Chinese on the Manipuri culture. During
the early 1990's, hundreds of people died in fighting between
security forces and groups seeking to establish Manipur as an
independent state. On
December 31, 1993, the Indian government responded to the crisis by
dismissing Manipur's elected government and imposing central rule
over the state. In December 1994, the Indian government revoked central rule over Manipur. The Legislative Assembly was reinstated and a coalition government was formed. At that time, Oudh Narain Srivastava, formerly the governor of Nagaland, became Manipur's governor. In February 1995, Congress I took office in Manipur after gaining a majority in the state's Legislative Assembly. |