MY STATE. MANIPUR

Manipur is situated in the eastern-most part of India situated in between 24°49′01″N and 93°57′00″E and is bounded by Myanmar to its east. After the independence of India, a democratic form of government was formed in the region with the Maharaja as the executive head and a legislature was established. Manipur became a Part “C” state from 26th January 1950 and it was in 1957 a territorial council of 32 members was set up. In 1963, a legislative assembly was established and Manipur finally achieved full statehood on January 21, 1972.Manipur is a thinly populated state and presently the state is composed of only 9 districts.

Manipur was rightly called “The jewel of India” by Jawaharlal Nehru .The state is mostly mountainous and the valleys are dotted with lakes and is a paradise for nature lovers. This state has many places of natural scenic beauty unknown to most of the people of India. There are many places of tourist interest in state. The capital of the state Imphal is a centre of culture and commercial activity. The other places of tourists’ interest are Bishnu temple at Bishnupur, Loktak Lake, the biggest fresh water lake of eastern India, the Orchid yard at Khongampat. Keibul Lamjao the only floating National Park in the world is also located here in the state. There is one university-Manipur University, Imphal and one agricultural university in Central Agricultural University; Imphal , in the state.

The people of Manipur are grouped into three main ethnic communities: the Meiteis, majority of the people those inhabiting the valley, and the other two main ethno-denominations are, namely Nagas and Kuki-Chins .Besides Marwaris, Bengalis, Nepalis and people of other Indian communities also live here in the state. Agriculture has been the main occupation of the people of Manipur. Paddy is the main crop while maize is also cultivated. Handloom has been the biggest industry of the state where almost 3 lakh of the total population are dependent on it. Manipuri handicrafts are world famous and a major portion of the handicraft products are exported The are almost 10,000 small scale industries in the state. The state has been the first ever to introduce Oak Tasar industry where almost 30 million Tasar cocoons are produced each year.

There have been many social conflicts in the recent past, resulting in tensions between the Meiteis (the valley people) and the so called Naga people residing in Manipur for ages. Manipur is also involved in a border dispute with Nagaland .Manipur is considered a sensitive border state where the foreigners entering Manipur must possess a Restricted Area Permit which can be obtained from the Foreigners’ Regional Registration Office in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata or certain other state government offices. Permits are valid for only 10 days, and visitors must travel only on tours arranged by any authorized travel agents, in groups of four only. Moreover, they have to come to Imphal only by air and will not be permitted to travel outside the capital city. Although amazing but it is true that the game polo originated in Manipur from a similar game called Sagol Kangjei and the British soldiers and planters took it back to England, modified the rules and made it popular around the world .

Manipur is one of the least developed states of India with lack of economic as well as educational infrastructure. Although the GDP is growing at a good rate but heavy industrialization is negligible here. The state is naturally very beautiful with so many varieties of endangered species of animals and birds living here. The state has a long way to go in the field of industrial as well as economic development to stand up face to face with other developed states of the nation.