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Manipur (India)

by Jaume Ollé
Source: Flag Report

About the flag
Alternative flag
National convention on identification of state flags
Manipur (British India)

See also:

About the flag

The pakhangba is recognized by all groups a as national flag. The flag adopted as a state flag in the short period of independence (1947-1949) is the PAKHANGBA FLAG (national flag of Manipur, Snake Flag) in the red version. This flag has been kept by the independentists as the national flag, to date.
Jaume Ollé, 19 August 2003

Ziggiotto (1998) shows an image of this flag - I think the proportions are 4:5.
Jarig Bakker, 3 October 2003

Alternative flag

Indian states officially do not have flags of their own, except for Jammu and Kashmir. However, some unofficial flags have been reported:

Manipur: four horizontal bands of yellow, dark blue, red and green.
Jaume Ollé, 23 November 1996

by Antonio Martins

The Manipur flag posted is as reported from TV images and is not the princely state flag, but supposedly an independentist flag. But according to several sources this flag is (also?) used by the Telegu Desam party that claims separation of Telingana from Andhra Pradesh and might only be a mistake in attribution.
Jaume Ollé, 8 June 1999

In Flags of Aspirant Peoples this flag is labelled as "Manipur (Meithei and hill tribes)". It is more likely a revendicative or separatist flag than an 'unofficial state flag'.
Ivan Sache, 16 Sep 1999

This is not the official Manipur flag. The official flag is a symbol of 'Pakhangba,' the mythical founder ancestor of the Meitei (not Meithei), and is an intricately coiled snake. This was used before the take over of Manipur by India in 1949 and is still in widespread use within Manipur.
J.K. Parratt, 14 January 2002

The web page at http://www.uq.net.au/%7Ezzhsoszy/ips/m/manipur.html shows this flag, with four horizontal stripes yellow-blue-red-green for Manipur.
Valentin Poposki, 6 November 2006

National convention on identification of state flags

"The Sangai Express", 22 August 2010, reports:

"Consequent upon a series of discussion forums, the one day national convention on identification of State flags of ancient kingdom of Kangleipak (Manipur) held at GM Hall yesterday took various decisions. The convention unanimously observed that Pakhangba Pafal was found in most of the ancient flags collected from different sources. It is also mentioned in the puya (ancient chronicle) found from Ngariyanbam Kullachandra (Pandit Achouba). The convention further observed that the flag used during the reign of King Khagemba was a complete flag which could identify the land and did not have any outside influence. The convention also resolved to hand over the task of publishing all the findings in a book to the editorial board constituted on January 31 last."
http://www.e-pao.net/GP.asp?src=12..230810.aug10
Ivan Sache, 25 August 2010