Senapati Tangsa Poumai Naga Weaving Manipur Hills

Senapati in the Senapati district of Manipur is the district headquarters of the Naga-inhabited hill tracts of northern Manipur, where Poumai, Tangsa, Rongmei, and Thangal Naga communities produce traditional hand-woven textiles using backstrap looms. The Poumai community produces Yongchak tote bags and shawls with distinctive red and black stripe patterns tied to ceremonial occasions. The Senapati district cooperative weaving society supports registration of artisan weavers and provides yarn procurement, design training, and access to state emporiums. The hill districts of Manipur — Senapati, Tamenglong, Churachandpur — have experienced decades of insurgency-related disruption to cooperative infrastructure. Peace consolidation under the National Ceasefire Agreement has enabled cooperative revitalisation. Senapati produces medicinal plants, bamboo, and pineapple in addition to the weaving tradition. The district is also part of the potential highway connecting the Brahmaputra plains to the Imphal valley and Myanmar.