New construction inside Kangla Fort should be done after consultation with experts - ACOAM Lup
Source: IT News

Imphal, November 20 2018: Without mentioning directly about the controversial Ras Leela Auditorium inside Kangla Fort, ACOAM Lup Kangleipak has urged the government of Manipur to consult and take recommendation of the competent experts and committee before taking up any new project of development inside the fort.

The ACOAM Lup Kangleipak also submitted a written objection against the construction of historical monuments and replicas without proper excavation works within the jurisdiction of the Kangla Fort to the concern government authority.

In the written objection, the ACOAM Lup stated that Kangla Fort is of a great importance in regards to the Socio Cultural and Historical Accounts of Manipur.

By the term Kangla, we mean the holly place which is situated in the heart of Imphal City and had been the palatial seat of the Meitei Kings since the 1st century A.D.Over and above, the Kangla is a sacred and the most important place which is indispensably related to the Meitei culture, history of Manipur, cosmology and way of worshipping god.

It said, "the original boundary of Kangla was wider and bigger than the present size.

it is surrounded by the Imphal River on the east and National Highway No.39 on all three sides of north, west and south.

Previously the area of the Kangla was also beyond the Imphal River.

The size of Kangla was one mile in breadth and one mile in length.

In early days, the exact area of Kangla was in the eastern side.

It included the area where the Chingangbal Khongnang is standing still now and surrounded by the road leading to Menuthong Bridge.

In the north, it reached Kekrepan which is commonly known as Kekrupat.

In the northwest, it was upto the Khoibu (the former site of state PWD Office).

In the west, it reached upto the Kangpokpi (the present surrounding area of old Assembly Secretariat).

In the southwest, it was upto Tolong (Nityaibat Chuthek) .

In the South, it reached upto Chakkaba Udoilok, the last northern corner of Mongba Hanba Irel.

In the southeast, it was upto the Wakran Panthong.

The area surrounded by the above area was the boundary of Kangla.

During the period of king Marjit, the area of Kangla was extended upto Khurai Soibam Leikai Road which runs northward from Nongmeibung Nambam Chuthek to Khurai Telipati" .

The ACOAM Lup elaborated that that most of the construction done upto the period of King Marjit were totally destroyed by the Burmese during the Seven Year Devastation (1819 to 1825).Other building and works of development in the Kangla area upto the period of King Chandrakirti were destroyed again by the British as the result of the defeat of the Meities at the hands of the British troops in the last war of independence, 1891 .

The Kangla Development Board form by the Government of Manipur appears to have been done in a hurry after handing over of the complex between the DG AR Shillong and the CM of Manipur on 20th November, 2004 at Imphal.

The Assam Rifles/Army assets created in 113 years of stay inside Kangla appears to have been sized as no reference is made any where in any documents as to what happens to removable and irremovable assets and about the maintenance, or upkeep other than opening of new offices and removing some important land marks from military history point view at random.

Following that, the sacred place of Kangla Fort has been carried out with new project of development, construction, restoration, preservation and conservation of the Kangla without the recommendation of competent experts and committee, which has rendered with the undermining of the historic Kangla Fort.

The ACOAM Lup said that the historic Kangla Fort should be developed, reconstructed and beautified by the government of Manipur only after a proper excavation of the Kangla Fort by archaeological experts, only after recommendation of a specially appointed committee in order to maintain the significance and importance of the Kangla Fort.

It appealed to maintain the present Kangla Fort which is a also a sacred place for Meiteis in particular, may be upgraded and developed to the standard of a world heritage in the near future.

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