Among the many facets of Manipuri culture, none has had a far more reaching extent on the world stage than Sagol Kangjei. It is a part of the cultural inheritance of Manipur with its ancestry traced to the waves of people migrating from southern China in the prehistoric times. 

Due to historical exigencies, this indigenous game of Manipur became the progenitor of the modern game of polo. The game which has a long history, intertwined in myths and culture, was introduced to the British in middle part of 19th Century A.D.

In 1859, a British officer, Capt. Robert Stewart along with some tea planters started the world’s first polo club at Silchar, Assam, after studying and playing Sagol Kangjei with Chandrakirti Singh, the Maharaj of Manipur and his soldiers, stationed at the time in Cachar. Capt. Stewart is credited for starting what is known as the English Polo. Since then Polo has become a very popular sport across the globe.

Despite polo being Manipur’s gift to the world, the indigenous Manipuri ponies, on whose back the game originated, is rapidly being pushed on the brink of extinction. Notwithstanding, Manipur government declaring polo as the State Game and a State’s Pony policy formulated, the polo ponies of Manipur are less than 500 heads. Once owned by almost every household in Manipur, the population of the Pony has dwindled drastically. 

Besides losing its social value, depletion of grazing grounds have forced the few surviving ponies to scavenge for food in garbage dumping grounds and many of them have died due to choking, swallowing polythene.

Though small in size, Manipuri pony is not only one of the well-known horse breeds of India but one of the purest and prestigious breeds of equines of India.

It is believed to be a descendant of the Mongolian wild horse, crossed with oriental and Arab stock. It is a strong and hardy and has very good adaptability to extreme geo-climatic conditions. They are found in Manipur, Assam, and are similar to the ponies of south east Asian.

Manipuri ponies are of 11-13 hands high with a good shoulder, short back, well-developed quarters and strong limbs. They are intelligent and extremely tough and have tremendous endurance. Perhaps all these qualities made them most suitable for the game of polo.

It is said the Manipuri ponies are semi wild in nature and like to graze on marshy greens. While few pony owners keep them in well maintained stables, this method of domestication is not practiced by all.

Most ponies are left to graze in certain marshy areas with long ropes around their necks.  These ponies are pulled up for practice and for the games whether required.

On some occasions like during the monsoon or under some developing hostile conditions, they are pulled in to standby stables.

However, these animals pulled themselves out of their pegs and strayed into populated and busy roads in search of food. While they become a hazard on the road, they are also maimed, injured in road accidents and become diseased due to consumption of polythene and unhygienic food.

This indicates the predicament these loving animals find themselves in and it is up to the people of the state to either do something or do nothing. If pony protection programs are not initiated urgently the whole pony population is more likely to be wiped out very soon.

As a society which has a close relationship with the horse; so much so that it venerates the horse, preservation and propagation of this rare natural heritage it a must.

Manipur has to reinstate Manipuri polo ponies to its old glory by way of reinvention as the animal has done so much for the erstwhile Asiatic kingdom that has a recorded history since 33 AD.

If the authority of the state does not rescue it for its current predicament, history will never forgive this generation.