Kangla Fort, Ima Keithel and Govindajee Temple, Loktak Lake, Keibul Lamjao and the INA Memorial, then Khongjom.
Manipur, the land of jewels, is known for its lake and its women-run market. Day one visits Kangla Fort, the old seat of Manipur's kings, Ima Keithel, the market run entirely by women, and the Shree Govindajee Temple. Day two goes to Loktak Lake with its floating islands, Keibul Lamjao, the world's only floating national park and home of the sangai deer, and the INA Memorial at Moirang. Day three visits the Khongjom War Memorial. You need an Inner Line Permit, and you should check current travel advisories before you go.
Kangla Fort in the centre of Imphal was the seat of the kings of Manipur until 1891, when the British took it after the Anglo-Manipur War. It was held by the Assam Rifles until 2004 and then opened to the public. Inside are the restored citadel, the coronation hall, the Govindajee temple ruin, sacred ponds and statues of the mythical Kangla Sha.
Ima Keithel, the Mothers' Market, in the Khwairamband bazaar of Imphal is run entirely by women, as it has been for centuries. Several thousand women sell vegetables, fish, spices, handloom cloth and crafts from rows of stalls in three large buildings. Only married women may trade here, and stalls pass from one generation to the next.
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Shree Govindajee Temple
Shree Govindajee Temple stands beside the old royal palace in Imphal and is the main Vaishnavite temple of Manipur. Built in 1846 under Maharaja Nara Singh and rebuilt after an earthquake, it has twin gold-plated domes and a large pillared hall. The morning and evening aartis are accompanied by conch shells and drums.
Loktak Lake near Moirang is the largest freshwater lake in North East India. It is known for its phumdis, floating mats of soil and vegetation, some ringed into circular fish farms. Fishermen live in huts on the larger ones. Sendra hill gives a view over the water, and boats take visitors out among the floating islands.
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Keibul Lamjao National Park
Keibul Lamjao National Park, at the southern end of Loktak Lake, is described as the only floating national park in the world. Much of it is a thick mat of floating vegetation. It is the last natural home of the sangai, the brow-antlered deer of Manipur. Watchtowers on Babet Ching hillock offer the best chance to see the deer at dawn.
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INA Memorial Moirang
The INA Memorial at Moirang marks the place where the flag of the Indian National Army was raised on Indian soil on 14 April 1944. The complex has a statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, a replica of the INA memorial once built in Singapore, and a museum with letters, photographs, badges and weapons of the army.
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Khongjom War Memorial
Khongjom War Memorial stands on Kheba Hill in Thoubal district, about 35 km from Imphal. It commemorates the battle of April 1891, the last stand of the Manipuri forces against the British in the Anglo-Manipur War, where Paona Brajabashi and his men fell. A tall sword-shaped monument crowns the hill, and Khongjom Day is observed on 23 April.
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