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Ponds and lakes · State

Ponds and lakes in Manipur

1,556ponds, out of 1,658 water bodies

The 1st Census of Water Bodies counted 1,658 water bodies in Manipur. 57 of them were not in use and 6 had been encroached upon. Pick a district below to see its ponds on a map, village by village.

What the census counted in Manipur

57 of 1,658 water bodies (3%) are not in use: dried up, silted, built over or polluted. Bringing them back is one of the cheapest ways to recharge groundwater.

1,658ponds, tanks, lakes and other water bodies
1,556of them are ponds (94%)
97%still in use (1,601)
6encroached upon
  • Ponds1,556
  • Tanks17
  • Lakes19
  • Reservoirs64
  • Check dams and percolation tanks1
  • Others1

Source: 1st Census of Water Bodies, Ministry of Jal Shakti (counted in 2018-19, published 2023).

Ponds in each district of Manipur

Districts ranked by number of ponds. The bar shows ponds; the line under each name shows all water bodies and how many are not in use.

  1. 1Imphal West345 water bodies, 1% not in use335
  2. 2Thoubal372 water bodies, 5% not in use334
  3. 3Bishnupur322 water bodies, 0% not in use301
  4. 4Churachanpur130 water bodies, 3% not in use129

Groundwater in Manipur

Ponds are one way rain gets back into the ground. See how hard Manipur is pumping its groundwater, district by district.

Groundwater level in Manipur

Bringing a pond in Manipur back

Most ponds that are not in use can be revived. The work is the same in a village or a city sector:

Step 1

Survey

Map the pond's full original area, its inlets and its catchment, and record encroachments and sewage outfalls.

Step 2

Desilt

Dig out the silt that has sealed the bed, so water soaks into the ground again instead of evaporating.

Step 3

Reconnect

Clear and line the channels that bring rain in, with a silt trap before the pond; divert sewage away from it.

Step 4

Recharge

Add recharge shafts or wells in the bed where the soil is tight, so water reaches the aquifer faster.

Step 5

Protect

Fence or plant the banks, mark the boundary and hand upkeep to the panchayat or residents' body.

Talk to TerraSetu about a pondPond rejuvenation: cost and processOther ways to recharge

Frequently asked questions

How many ponds are there in Manipur?

The 1st Census of Water Bodies (Ministry of Jal Shakti, counted in 2018-19, published 2023) counted 1,556 ponds in Manipur, out of 1,658 water bodies in all.

How many lakes are there in Manipur?

The 1st Census of Water Bodies counted 19 lakes and 64 reservoirs in Manipur, along with 17 tanks.

How many water bodies in Manipur are not in use?

57 of the 1,658 water bodies (3%) were not in use when counted: dried up, silted, cut off from their catchment, polluted or built over. 6 had been encroached upon.

Which district of Manipur has the most ponds?

Imphal West, with 335 ponds and 345 water bodies in all, according to the 1st Census of Water Bodies.

How do ponds help groundwater in Manipur?

A working pond holds rain long enough for it to soak into the ground and refill wells and borewells nearby. A silted or encroached pond sends that rain down the drain instead. Desilting, reopening inlets and adding recharge shafts in the pond bed are among the cheapest ways to recharge groundwater.