Manipur Bir Tikendrajit House in total disarray
NEW DELHI, May 19 : A rudderless ship, that is what Manipur Bir Tikendraji House at Chanakyapuri, South Delhi has been reduced to with the staff running around trying to keep the House in order. When The Sangai Express visited the State house, there .....
Incentives for Everesters
IMPHAL, May 19: The State Government will consider incentives that may be given to the five Manipuri mountaineers who have successfully scaled the world’s highest peak Mt Everest, informed the Chief Minister while talking with The Sangai Express. The.....
Governor, CM, Dy CM congratulate So far, six from State have scaled Everest
IMPHAL, May 19: Governor Gurbachan Jagat, Chief Minister O Ibobi and Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam have congratulated the team of the 1st North East Mt Everest Expedition 2013 on summiting the highest peak of the world. Gurbachan Jagat said that the.....
Cleanliness drive at Ima Keithel
IMPHAL, May 18: With an objective to keep Ima Keithel neat and clean, Blooming Manipur, Kangla (Facebook Group), Manipur Times, Manipur Photography Club, European Manipuri Asso-ciation (EMA) and Manipur Cycle Club jointly organised a cleanliness drive at .....
KNF celebrates raising day
IMPHAL, May 19: The Kuki National Front (KNF) celebrated its 26th raising day at Camp Ebenezer, Sadar Hills yesterday with more than 200 cadres and leaders. The raising day celebration started with a mass fasting prayer. Addressing the gathering KNF p.....
AIDS Candle Light Memorial Day Observed Solemnly NGOs urge for amended AIDS policy
IMPHAL, May 19 : While observing the International AIDS Candle Light Memorial Day at JN Dance Academy today, 16 NGOs have urged the authorities to implement an amended Manipur State AIDS policy within three months. Generally, International AIDS Candle.....
Rongali Bihu
IMPHAL, May 19:The Asom Samaj Manipur hosted Rongali Bihu celebration at Devalaya Mandir, Kalibari (Thangal bazar) today with Education Minister M Okendro Singh gracing the celebration as the chief guest. While Okendro conveyed warm wishes to the Assam.....
To check frauds and money swindling Economic offence wing set up
IMPHAL, May 19: With the primary objective of checking the practice of swindling money from the public by non-banking financial companies (NBFC), an Economic Offence Wing has been set up in Manipur Police Department. The Economic Offence Wing was set .....
Guardians' body takes up street vendors' cause
IMPHAL, May 19: Noting that upper floors of the three market complexes at Khwairamband keithel are yet to be occupied, All Manipur Students' Guardians' Organisation has proposed that the Government of Manipur provide trading slots to women street vendors .....
DU admissions
IMPHAL, May 18 : Delhi University has announced the dates for undergraduate admissions for the academic session 2013-2014. It will commence on June 5 and continue till June 19, said a press release issued by Naga Students’ Union, Delhi. Unlike las.....
Ex-rebels are not untouchables : Dy CM
IMPHAL, May 19: Stating that the State Government has initiated several measures to bring insurgents on the path of peace, Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam has called upon all the people not to view or treat former rebels who have laid down arms and retu.....
UG cadres surrender
IMPHAL, May 19: Security forces of Red Shield Division recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition buried under ground in 2007 by a cadre of UPPK at the foothills of Thangjing ridge, said a PIB (DW) release that identified the UG cadre as SS Capt Moiran.....
ZU concerned
IMPHAL, May 19:Zeliangrong Union (Assam, Manipur, Nagaland) has expressed concern over the death of an NSCN (IM) cadre in a reported gunfight with ZUF cadres yesterday. In a press release, ZU (AMN) said that it has always been working for maintaining p.....
Tousem body
IMPHAL, May 19:Development Committee Tousem Block 52-Tamei AC has drawn the attention of Chief Minister O Ibobi regarding bad road conditions of the Sub-Division. In a press release, the committee said that the Chief Minister had promised during his vi.....
Hurt in mishap
IMPHAL, May 19:Three youngsters, who were riding a brand new Yamaha FZ motorcycle, met with an accident in front of Mantripukhri headquarters of 69 Bn CRPF this evening. According to an informed source, the biker trio hit the road median and rolled sev.....
MLA inspects
IMPHAL, May 19:Ahead of the monsoon season, Yaiskul AC MLA E Chand today conducted a field inspection of the vulnerable sections of Imphal river bank within Yaiskul Assembly segment together with IFC officials. Observing that many excavations dug up fo.....
Hate the person who breaks traffic rules
If you think no one is watching then you are mistaken! But unfortunately, I am not a traffic cop who will jump in front and enforce you fine for breaking the traffic rule. It is the general Indian nature of carelessness and interpretation of pampered free.....
Traditional healing methods with special reference to Manipur
By Dr K Paochunbou Every ethnic community in Manipur has well-established knowledge, skills, beliefs and practices relating to promotion of positive health and avoidance of sickness even before the hospital oriented system of medicine. In an old civiliza.....
Mis-selling Insurance
By Dipankar Jakharia Not a single week goes by when I am not asked by my readers about an ULIP policy they have invested and now feels as if they have been ripped-off by it. I have written many a times before and ready to write many a time in future abou.....
World Migratory Bird Day 2013
Large scale climatic changes, as have been experienced in the past, are expected to have an effect on the timing of migration. Studies have shown a variety of effects including timing changes in migration, breeding as well as population variations due to .....
Manipur Masala
By : Sanatombi Angomcha
From Wankhei, With Love!
Home is a place where you grow up wanting to leave, and grow old wanting to get back to. ––John Ed Pearce.
I cannot agree more on the above quote. When we were teens we thought it was a trend to leave home to pursue our studies and later to shape our career, staying outside Manipur. The lucrative career opportunities, the glitz of big city life, the big fat salary we would earn every month and most importantly, an escapade from the ennui of restlessness and hoo-hah in the state — all of these are a few accountable reasons why most of us prefer to stay out of home for all the years. ‘Yumda leiba bheebhula chudro... toufam chaafam keim khangdabani, meisuu suklaak laakte amambaduda matha sai...’: these are some of the most heard comments from those of us who prefer to stay out of home. We pretend to sound so cool while telling all these but deep in our hearts we know what we are craving for; we know what we want but since there is a big gap between our wants and means, we console ourselves with such make belief melodramatic dialogues.
But for an insane fellow, no one wants to leave home and settle outside Manipur. It has become a drift among most of the Manipuris to stay out of home, either to pursue higher studies or to settle with some lucrative careers. In pursuit of success, most of us reconcile with almost everything that we come across. We often miss everything about our home yet seldom admit it because we the outsourced lots are expected to be strong-hearted creatures. We are expected to be rational most of the time. Emotion should be always checked as it ruins our logic. All these are nonetheless not true as I have mentioned earlier too. The truth as I understand is that we miss home every single day right from dawn to dusk. From a very personal experience, at the outbreak of dawn, when the chirps of morning birds wake me up, I miss the sound of numberless sendrang. Come numidangwairam, I cannot help missing the similar chirps of sembrang and when it is lai-dhoop time, I miss the sight of that dimly-lit lantern (read laaten) at our maangon and the fragrance of burning mekruuk that spreads across the home, making us feel more blessed and pious.
Well, it does not matter whether you live in a big mansion or a thatched khaangpoksung, home is home and it is the best place on the earth, not just because it’s the place where our heart is, but also because it’s where our root belongs to. We cherish everything about our home and its surroundings. From a local perspective, the mundane of the most mundane things are found sweet or nostalgic when it comes to our very leikai. The lamjao sorok, the pukhri beside the road, the pan dukan or Potfham where we buy singju or achapot (it could also be a kwa matap), the hotel where one enjoys ideal chit-chats with leikai friends, the community hall, the leikai lampak etc. — all of these evoke nostalgia on our mind. Taking a golden chance of homesickness, I am filling up the remaining part of this column today with the same homely recipe. It’s about a very special penchant for a place in Manipur where most of my memorable childhood days were spent. So here is a bicycling trip down a memory lane through my lens that justifies the title of my column—‘From Wangkhei, With Love’
The beautiful ruins of Sana Konung, the sacred Govindaji Temple, the vast spreading Ningthem Pukhri, not to forget the quaint presence of Ramji Prabhu, the hub of hockey and football: the Eastern Ground, once a mini market: Keithel Asangbi, the famous Panthoibi and Durga Puja Lampak, one of the Government run schools for Girls in Imphal: Wangkhei Girls’, and of course Kaka Chaoba’s Pork Vendor at Thangapat, Rani Handloom at Lourembam Leirak, the faklaang segaiba school: Wangkhei Boys’ High School, one of the most happening clubs in the city: Lizard Library at Meihoupham Lampak, one of the mission schools in Imphal East: St George High School and one of the popular caterers: ACGRU tent house — these are some of the vivid pictures that continuously strike my mind whenever I remember Wangkhei, the very place where I was born and brought up, the place where most of my friends, family and saagei natei live. Nostalgia is a seasoned disease in my heart when it comes to Wangkhei and anything associated with the place. Call it the ‘frog in the well mentality’ or anything, but I am a typical Wangkhei Ningol who loves to flaunt as much as she can about this very place in Manipur.
I must not forget to mention that Wangkhei is also the place which is authentically associated with the origin of Wangkhei Phee. Small-scale handloom industry is a booming sector in this area at Imphal East district. Wangkhei maidens are always famous for their hard work and diligence. I have come across a very funny local saying ‘Wangkhei Nupada Leirunu, Wangkhei Ningol di Louba yai’. I am not sure if this random saying reflects the ideal image of a Wangkhei Ningol as if she is the epitome of all womanly virtues or otherwise it’s just a saying.
By the way, I am extremely sorry to hear about the news of (Late) Chungkham Rani. She was the one, who created a signature brand in Manipur handloom industry commonly known as Rani-Phee. Earlier known as the ‘Engineer-Phee’, Rani-Phee is an exclusive collection for every Manipuri woman. Thanks to that great lady who set her own trend in handloom industry in the state, she will always be remembered. She had been and will always be one of the ‘Prides of Wangkhei’. It’s a great loss that she is no more. May many innovators join her league in the future and make the place proud. And may God bless her soul to rest in peace!
Before I conclude this write up, I heartily want to thank all those individuals from Wangkhei from different fields who had made me proud in the past and who make me proud at present. This is to all the ‘Prides of Wangkhei’. Cheers!
pari
seriously!! oh, come on, dont you have any more masalas. Its getting boring.
