Nightlife Lightens Up Manipur

Nightlife in Imphal got a boost with the launch of a night plaza along the Kangla moat, providing opportunities for boating and holding music concerts along with 110 stalls, including those serving indigenous cuisine every weekend. 

- Levion Jimmy

October 2, 2017, marked a new beginning in the lives of Imphalites with Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh officially launching Imphal Evening- the first weekend nightlife in the heart of Imphal city.

According to the BJP-led coalition government, the initiative is to show that Manipur is no longer the trouble-torn state as it has been usually portrayed to the outside world but is actually a safer place for tourists- both domestic and international.

At the same time it also aims to provide a good recreational space to the people, which will help improve healthy family life in the city besides encouraging extension of business hours in the core area of the city, thereby improving the overall economy of the state.

Shadowed with armed conflicts for decades and the subsequent imposition of the ‘disturbed area status’, nobody dares to venture out at night in Manipur. After 7pm, Imphal resembles a ghost town and nightlife sounded like a far fetched story…

The ‘Imphal Evening’ is expected to be one of the major attractions for the upcoming Sangai Festival- the tourism festival of Manipur. The one kilometer long night plaza which stretches from Khoyathong junction to Raj Bhawan junction is set up by blocking the eastern half of Nationa Highway-2 that runs through the Imphal city and is opened every Saturday and Sundays from 7 pm to 10 pm without any entry fee. However, the plaza will remain open daily for 10 days during the Sangai Festival.