"...Imphal and Kohima suddenly awakened the world to the titanic scale of the military conflict in mainland Asia..." - Christopher Bayly and Tim Harper, Forgotten Armies
The 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Imphal was in the year 2014. The original idea of marking and commemorating the 70th Anniversary of this historic battle was privately and publicly pushed by Hemant Singh Katoch in Manipur and elsewhere since mid-2012. He also undertook a series of activities in order to raise awareness about the Battle of Imphal and its 70th Anniversary, including:
• The production of a brochure on the Battle of Imphal at the end of November 2012.
• The development and release of a map of the Battle of Imphal in November 2012.
• The setting up of a Battle of Imphal-focused stall/exhibition at the Sangai Festival in Imphal from November 21-30, 2012.
• The creation of this website (www.battleofimphal.com) in early December 2012.
• The release of a commemorative logo for the 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Imphal in April 2013. This logo was revised in March 2014 to include the Battle of Kohima as well (featured above).
Battle of Imphal Tours
Perhaps most importantly, Hemant launched a series of guided tours focused on the Battle of Imphal in 2013 and early 2014. These are the first Second World War battlefield tours in India. The main objective of these tours is to draw attention to the extraordinary events that took place across Manipur during the Second World War. These tours include (to-date) the Battle of Imphal Tour, the Tiddim Road Tour, the Shenam Saddle Tour, the Battle of Sangshak Tour and the INA Tour. In addition, two battlefield treks, a Victoria Cross-themed tour and a (non-WWII) walking tour called the Imphal Walk were also on offer for the duration of the anniversary.
Battle of Kohima Tour
In March 2014 a guided tour on the Battle of Kohima was launched.
70th Anniversary Commemoration of the Battle of Imphal
As a then-member of the Manipur Tourism Forum for a year, Hemant helped organise the 70th Anniversary Commemoration of the Battle of Imphal from March to June 2014. For more details on the commemoration, please visit the Manipur Tourism Forum website. The Forum can also be contacted at:
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Burma/Myanmar Tours
In mid-2018, after an extensive recce of sites in that country, a series of Burma/Myanmar Tours were launched.