Soaring population, land price strain valley districts
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, May 11 2025: The latest demographic and geographic analysis of Manipur underscores a state at a crossroads, grappling with deep rural roots even as its valley districts face soaring urban pressures, widening infrastructure gaps and unaffordable land price.

According to "Number of Villages, Towns, Households, Population and Area (India, States/ UTs, Districts and Sub-Districts) - 2011" table in the Primary Census Abstract (PCA) from the 2011 Census of India published in May 2022, Manipur, covering 22,327 square kilometres and home to 2.86 million people, remains primarily rural: 70.8 per cent of residents live across 2,515 villages, compared with fewer than 30 per cent in its 51 towns.

The PCA was published by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India (RGCCI) under the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Mention may be made that Census 2021 was postponed due to Covid-19 pandemic.

According to the data, urban areas of Manipur, occupying just 0.8 per cent of the state's land (179.5 sq km), have an average 4,647 residents per square kilometre, nearly 36 times of the 91 persons/sq km in rural areas.

Imphal West and Imphal East are functioning as a magnet for people in search of jobs and services.

The pressure on housing, transportation and utilities in these districts is becoming untenable.

Imphal West, the most populous district, houses 518,000 residents in 111,156 households, followed by Senapati with 479,148 people and Imphal East with 456,113.In stark contrast, Tamenglong has just 140,651 inhabitants, and Ukhrul trails similarly.

Churachandpur (including Pherzawl), spanning 4,570 sq km of rugged terrain, supports only 274,143 people.

At the sub district level, disparities intensify.

Lamphelpat in Imphal West records 3,690 persons per square kilometre, nearly matching the core urban wards, while Porompat in Imphal East has 244,089 residents, two thirds of whom live in urban areas.

At the opposite end, Ukhrul South's 12,360 residents and Kamjong Chassad's 16,717 are spread over more than 1,100 sq km each.

Urbanisation is heavily skewed with 62.3 per cent of Imphal West's people now live in towns and cities, whereas Senapati and Churachandpur have 90 per cent of its population in rural areas.

Bishnupur and Thoubal report modest urban shares of 36.8 per cent and 35.8 per cent, respectively, but their urban densities - 2,363 and 4,811 persons/sq km - outpace many larger districts.

Rapid, largely unplanned growth in sub districts like Lamphelpat and Porompat has created overcrowded settlements, poor sanitation and flood risk.

At present, several factors have driven land price in the outskirts of Imphal city to between Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,500 per square foot, the with higher range prevalent especially in areas with better facilities for education, and other infrastructure, making a 1,000 sq ft plot (approximately 0.022 acre) cost Rs 10 lakh to Rs 25 lakh, far beyond the state's per capita income of a little over Rs 1 lakh.

Concerned policy experts warn that without targeted urban investment, service bottlenecks in water supply, sanitation, transportation and affordable housing will worsen as migrants flock to Imphal West and East for jobs, education and healthcare.

The state needs investment in urban infrastructure, expanding roads, water supply, and public transit, while simultaneously bolstering rural connectivity, health and education.

Demographic projections indicate continued rural-to-urban migration along with steady natural population growth, trends that officials say may intensify existing urban challenges.

According to experts, improvements to roads and digital infrastructure in Imphal could help connect agricultural producers in hill districts to broader markets, potentially reducing transport costs and encouraging investment in processing and service industries.

Some experts view these rural-urban linkages as a means to gradually alleviate pressure on the state capital.

With around three-quarters of the population still engaged in agriculture and living in villages, the state government may need to balance investments between expanding valley-based urban infrastructure and improving access and services in hill regions.

Comment