Will Kwatha festival be able to satisfy tourists this time?

By Ashem Lalit

MOREH| Oct 15

The Kwatha village being a part of the history of Manipur, though small in size, is a very important village. It is located at a distance of 109 kilometres from Imphal and 20 kilometres from the border town Moreh.

The village has been in existing since 1469 AD, now has a population of 410 villagers consisting 74 households under different surnames. According to history, it is also believed that original settlers of the village were of Manipuri refugees who were fleeing the State during the period of Seven Years Devastation.

The village still maintains the tradition of the feudal days therefore courtiers and attendants still are in vogue even today. Villagers also follow the old Meetei faith.  The shrine of Nongpok Ninghtou Nongpok Panthoibi is located at a little distance from the village.

Even though the village takes an important place in the history of Manipur, it is being neglected by the State due to its geographical location. As for instance, the connecting roads to the village have never been black-topped.

This has caused the villagers to face challenges and difficulties in matters of economy, health care, education, roadway connectivity, and other basic necessities of life. The sole means of livelihood for the villagers are agriculture, fermenting of bamboo shoots and other allied activates.

It may be mentioned that the per capita income of the villagers is a meager Rs. 27.20, making a total of Rs. 9928 in a year.     

Though the per capita income is low, the village has many potential for developments. If the mineral resources, forest, flora and fauna, and its natural beauty are preserved and utilised, it will bring in a speedy development.

The fermented bamboo shoots, which are the biggest source of income to the village, are a delicacy of Manipuris in general. Unfortunately, the bamboo flowering that occurred in the previous year, 2016 has dwindled the production of bamboo shoots for the next ten years. This will give a huge blow to the economy of the village.   

Regarding this matter, the State and central government have not taken up any measures to provide a solution. The residents of the village have appealed to the government to draw attention to the prevailing issue.

However, the Kwatha festival which started last year has provided an opportunity for the villagers to reach out to the public as well as take initiatives to better the economy by using available resources.

 The second Kwatha festival will be held for three days from October 27 to 29.  As a part of the festival, medical camp, trekking and moonlight camping, music, folk dance, matam eshei, Mangka live state, thang ta, Nokphade, jumba dance, Manipuri bruce lee show, photography competition, tree plantation, flute music, Cajon Dairies, rock show and thabal chongba will be featured.

Above all this, stalls that highlights the resources of the villages will be opened. The public have started giving opinions that the village, which has roots in the history, must be protected by the people and the government.

To make the festival successful, the roadway connecting the village is currently being repaired and camping sites along with parking areas are being constructed.