• The Manipur Government has expressed its reservations to the Centre over a hydro-electric modernisation plan in the state’s famous Loktak Lake saying it could be detrimental to the endangered species of Sangai deer apart from disturbing the biodiversity of the lake.

ABOUT SANGAI DEER

• Scientific Name- Rucervus eldii
• The brow-antlered deer, commonly known as the Sangai, a unique and rare species found exclusively in Manipur’s Keibul Lamjao National Park (KLNP).
  • Keibal Lamjao is the only floating national park in India.
• It is the State animal of Manipur.
• Their unique floating habitat, traditionally known as ‘fumdi’, is made of mats of soil, plants and organic matter.
• Once distributed throughout the Manipur State, Sangai is now restricted to the 40 sq km area park and is numbered less than 100 adult individuals in the wild.
• The animal’s coat is a dark reddish brown during winter months and it becomes a much lighter shade in summer.
• The brow-antlered deer usually consumes grass.
• The deer has been classified as ‘endangered’ on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List and added in Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.

ABOUT LOKTAK LAKE

• Loktak Lake is regarded as among the most beautiful and ecologically diverse lakes in the Northeast.
• Loktak lake was initially designated as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention in 1990.
• Later it was also listed under the Montreux Record in 1993.