Manipur’s floating wonder: Inside India's mystical Loktak Lake

Amidst the lush green valleys of Northeast’s Moirang in Manipur lies a mysterious body of water that looks like a massive circular patch of oversized lily pads. However, a closer look reveals that these are not leaves at all, but a massive network of perfectly circular, floating islands. This is Loktak Lake in Manipur is the largest freshwater lake, with a surreal landscape that serves as a vital ecological sanctuary and home to some of the planet's most remarkable wildlife, including one of the longest snakes on Earth.The PhumdisThese bizarre circular islands are locally known as phumdis. Far from being solid land, they are actually floating masses of vegetation, soil, and various organic matters caught in different stages of decomposition. Despite their buoyant, spongy nature, the phumdis are incredibly resilient. They are packed tightly enough and are thick enough to support the weight of entire structures, including the actual homes of the local fisherfolk community who live their lives directly on the water.The World's Only Floating National ParkThe extraordinary nature of this lake reaches its peak within the Keibul Lamjao National Park, which holds the unique crown of being the world’s only floating national park. The entire park spans an area of 40 square kilometers, with the floating phumdis accounting for roughly six square kilometers of that space.According to data from NASA, this highly specialized environment acts as a haven for biodiversity. It is home to around 200 species of aquatic plants and 400 species of animals. Among these residents is the rare Indian python—celebrated as one of the longest snakes in the world—which thrives within the island network. Home of the Dancing DeerBeyond its massive pythons, the lake is the ultimate sanctuary for the Sangai deer, also known as the brown-antlered deer. By 1950, the species was feared to be nearly extinct. However, following dedicated conservation and protection efforts from the State of Manipur, their population has slowly and steadily managed to increase. The Sangai deer are affectionately nicknamed the "dancing deer." The people who live on the floating phumdis earned this name because of the way they have to balance and move around on the surface of the phumdis. It is always. Not stable.A Unique Habitat Facing Modern ThreatsThe phumdis are in trouble because of problems. The water level is getting higher because of climate change and things that people have built. A time ago in the 1980s, they built the Ithai Dam. This made the water gather in Loktak Lake. It completely stopped the Imphal River from flowing like it used to.The phumdis are always flooded now because of this. It has messed up the way the islands work. The floating phumdis are very fragile. They need to be taken care of. The people who live on the phumdis and the phumdis themselves are in trouble.Because the water remains permanently high, the roots of the phumdis can no longer sink down to reach the lakebed to absorb critical nutrients during the dry season. Starved of these minerals, the floating islands are now progressively becoming thinner and facing a highly uncertain future.