INTRODUCTION

“There is a pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
There is a society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar:
I love not to man the less, but Nature more”
~ Lord Byron

India is known not only for its diversity in terms of religion, caste, creed, culture, language, and food but also in terms of geographical area and beauty. India is the Union of 28 states and 7 union territories and every state has various glorious features concerning earlier mentioned points. Amongst all of them, there is a state called Manipur which is located in the northeastern part of India. Manipur is a unique state because of varied reasons like language, traditions, dress-up, and the beauty of nature. Manipur is called the state of 'Steep Mountain' surrounding vast flat planes, where people lived. The economy is the most significant element in the upliftment of a state. Nowadays, tourism is growing as an important contributor to the rise of the economy of the nation. Likewise, there is a lake in Manipur which is one of the centers of tourist attraction in Manipur and I'm not talking about any ordinary lake, it is the biggest lake in the northeastern part of India. It is none other than "LOKTAK LAKE".

LOKTAK LAKE AND KEIBUL LAMJAO NATIONAL PARK

The lake is located in Moirang in Manipur. The Loktak name is made up of two words in the meitei language, lok means stream and tak means the end. The total area of this lake is 287 sq. km. Its average depth is 2.7 m. Its maximum depth is around 4.7 m. You can figure out its extension in such a way that it is as big as a country called Maldives, which is an island country in the eastern part of the Southern part of the African continent. There is a series of floating landmasses or biomass which is locally called "Phumdis". It is comprised of soil, vegetation, and organic matter at various stages of decay. The upper portion of the phumdi is 3 meters tall including the height of the vegetation. The maximum growth of grasses has been found at 10 feet. And if we talk about the thickness under water is almost the same. The people who are residents of this place make their houses on the phumdi for the purpose to look after their families which are run on fish farming. Lake is the source of the abundance availability of fish. Fish is the major source of the Manipuri diet. Fishermen catch fish and sell them in the nearby market to get money enough to buy the necessary items for the family members. To catch fish in good numbers they had to wake up early in the morning at 4 o'clock. Villagers have made several circular structures of phumdis to catch the fish easily and that seems amazing as well. School is located on the surface too, where children go and get their education. The lake shelters about 23 species of aquatic plants, 100 types of birds, and 400 species of fauna like barking deer, sambar, and Indian rock python. Loktak lake was initially designated as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention in 1990. In addition to this, it was also added under the Montreux Record in 1993.

The distance between the capital city of Imphal and the Bishnupur district where the lake is located is 47.6 km. It has consolidated over centuries to form such a meadow that floats on the surface of the lake. The Single largest mass of phumdi is in the Southeastern part of the lake covering an area of 40 km, which is approximately 15.4 sq. miles. There is great importance of this 40 sq. km. because of the National park. This region of 40 km is a National Park and is known by the name of "KEIBUL LAMJAO" or "the vast land where tigers gather".The name has been given by the local people as their affection because they are so closely attached to this region. The Kel means Tiger, pul means gather and Lamjao means vast land. They believe that whenever forest fire takes place on the hills then the animals come down and take shelter there. Keibul Lamjao National is the only floating national park in the world. This, however, the national park was not originally a national park, and the reason is Sangai.

EXTINCTION TO EXISTENCE

"The Sangai"

Keibul Lamjao National Park is unique and a masterpiece of nature cause there is no other creation like that in the world. Even though it is known that it is the only floating National Park but there is another miracle of the maker and that is 'The Sangai'. Sangai is the sub-species of deer which is found only in Loktak lake in its natural habitat. It is known by other names as well like Eld's deer/brow-antlered deer. Across the world, it is the only place where Brow-Antlered Deer has occurred. It is the National animal of the Manipur state. Its biological name is Rucervus eldii eldii. It comes under the Conservation status of 'Endangered'.

In 1951, this species was declared extinct, however, somehow this species was found in loktak lake and their number merely was 14. In order to safeguard this deer; the government decided to promulgate the region of loktak as a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1955. Later on, it was upgraded and called the National Park in 1977.

The following data articulate the growth of the population of Sangai in Keibul Lamjao National Park:

Sangai is a single-isolated population and that's why it always has a vulnerability. Efforts are being taken to grow their population outside that National Park.

THREATS OF THE OF SANGAI

The prime focus of the keibul Lamjao National Park is the safeguarding of various species, particularly the Brow-Antlered Deers/Sangai. There are, however, some causes behind the threat to their lives and numbers in the keibul Lamjao and those are as follows:-

1. Disintegration of Phumdis:

As per the natural cycle of nature, the whole region submerges and then emerges with the surface again. After, however, the construction of the ithai barrage downstream, at times inundated Loktak lake. As a matter of fact, the ithai or ethai is concerned with the Hydroelectric multipurpose project of Loktak lake. Phumdis has started losing its thickness and also disintegrating. As per the documentary "The return of Sangai", by the Forest government of Manipur; Phumdis need at least a thickness of 75 cm to bear the weight of Sangai. However, with the efforts of the forest department and the local people, the condition is improving. In the whole national park of 40 km², a mere 8 km² is the area where Sangai wonders. Disintegration has reduced the area for them to stalk on the meadow or phumdi.

2. Over-intervention of people:

For fishing, most of the villagers live on the end of the hills and also on the phumdis. Thousands of people are dependent on this lake and due to that, the intervention of people has increased in such a way that animals and other species are under threat. People have built their houses and schools on it. Due to the moving nature of the phumdi, people get excited and come here not only to see the beauty but somewhat disturb the situation by jumping on the phumdi in eagerness, which is not good for nature.

CONSERVATIONAL MEASURES

Keibul Lamjao National Park is a rich place in terms of the beauty of nature and the only natural habitat of Brow-Antlered Deer. There are indeed some steps that were taken regarding safeguarding the phumdis and Sangai. The steps are given below:-

1. Several steps of the forest government were taken like rafts or bamboo were used to join phumdis by twining them. This led to the improvement in the regeneration of phumdis.
2. Awareness amongst people was increased for the well-being of the Sangai.

EPILOGUE

“When you do something noble and beautiful and nobody notices, do not be sad. For the sun every morning is a beautiful spectacle and yet most of the audience still sleeps.” ~ John Lennon

Keibul Lamjao National Park is the glory of Manipur. If we have something which is unparallel, we should respect them. Sangai is the only masterpiece as the sub-species of deer. If God has given us something priceless then we should take care of that. 

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