Sacred waters, gendered labour and survival: Ngamee women in the floating village of Loktak Lake

Loktak Lake in Manipur is more than an ecological resource — it is a deeply storied landscape embedded with material, cultural, and spiritual significance. Central to its ecological uniqueness is the phumdi , a floating biomass that supports both human habitation and rich biodiversity. However, state-led interventions like the construction of the Ithai Barrage in 1983 and the implementation of the Loktak Lake (Protection) Act, 2006, have disrupted the ecological balance and delegitimised indigenous lifeways by labelling native fisherfolk as ‘occupiers’. Within this contested landscape, gendered divisions of labour shape everyday life. While men typically engage in fishing, women perform dual forms of labour, managing household responsibilities and participating actively in the fish economy through tasks like preparing, smoking, and marketing fish. This paper explores how fisherwomen navigate their social and economic roles in a space marked by sacred meaning, political and ecological precarity. Drawing on extensive fieldwork in Champu Khangpok, a floating village on the lake, the study situates women's experiences within the framework of emotional political ecology, highlighting how gender, cultural cosmologies, state regulation, and environmental change are intertwined in shaping the lives and struggles of Loktak's fishing communities.