• A Devidas Sharma

Loktak Lake, is the largest freshwater wetland in Northeast India. also called the only Floating lake in the world is regarded as the ‘lifeline of the people of Manipur’ and soon, will be on the verge of extinction. Wetlands are highly productive ecosystems which provide multiple-value ecosystem services. Loktak Lake is a unique natural ecosystem with numerous national and international importance designated under the Ramsar Convention located in Bishnupur district of Manipur . It is the largest freshwater lake in northeast India covering an area of 246.72 km2 (National Wetland Atlas, 2009), and a part of Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot. The lake is used extensively by local people as a source of water for irrigation and domestic use and is an important wintering and staging area for water birds, particularly ducks. The Loktak Lake has a socioeconomic and cultural relationship with the people of Manipur. However, of late, the impacts of increase in population, urbanisation and the rapid pace of development have started being felt on Loktak Lake. The lake is under severe stress mainly due to human interventions like the construction of Ithai Barrage Dam, weed infestation, pollution, encroachment, overexploitation of resources and siltation thereby causing flooding of the agricultural fields and villages, decrease in fisheries production and loss of biodiversity. The resultant impacts on the livelihoods of the lake dwellers showed change in their occupational structure and income, increase in unemployment and health problems. The stress and its resultant impacts on the land and environment and on the livelihood of the lake dwellers are enormous. The once over 266 sq. km large Loktak Lake is now showing signs of shrinking and reduction in wetland spread. The lake had a seasonal and pulsating characteristic which kept it clean and healthy. However, changes in its hydrology due to regulation of water flow for development purpose are now showing a detrimental effect on the health of this wetland. The lake dwellers include people living on the lakeshore, islands and on phumdis(heterogeneous mass of vegetation, soil, and organic matters at various stages of decomposition). Bio-resources from the wetlands form the major economy of the rural people living in and around it. There is need to conserve the valuable resources of the wetlands from various anthropogenic pressures so that livelihoods of the people are secured. The loss of biodiversity and ecosystems is a threat to the functioning of our planet, our economy and human society. We believe it is essential to start tackling this problem as soon as possible. We do not have all the answers, but we will describe a framework for action that we hope will to assess the causes for this stress and its resultant impacts on the land and environment and on the livelihood of the lake dwellers.

Ramsar site, wetland biodiversity, phumdi

" Socio-economic, environment and biodiversity conservation of Loktak Lake:A reality check", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 3, page no.560-567, March-2019, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1903M67.pdf

" Socio-economic, environment and biodiversity conservation of Loktak Lake:A reality check", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 3, page no. pp560-567, March-2019, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1903M67.pdf