Untold story of World War II, eye witness account of Ukhrul’s encounter with the Japanese

By Tennoson Pheiray

A story telling session on Japanese forces capturing Ukhrul Town on 21 March 1944 was held at NERCORMP Conference Hall, Zimik Plaza, Viewland Ukhrul on 21 March 2019.

Story Tellers: Machung, Luikham & Shaiza (left to right)

N.  Luikham (IAS) Retd. Commissioner, Government of Manipur, who was studying Class V in 1944 at Ukhrul Middle English School, Machung Pheiray, Retd. Headmaster, who was studying Class II in 1944 at Ukhrul Middle English School and Thangsha Shaiza, studying in Class B in 1944 at Ukhrul Middle English School were the story tellers.

Thangsha Shaiza recollects that he was in his mid-teen around 15/16 years of age when the Japanese army came to Ukhrul on 21 March 1944. He was studying Class B in Ukhrul Midlle English School. He recalls the fateful day where endless vehicles and bullock carts came to the village along with Japanese armies.

Elephants and Bullocks were used to carry rations and ammunition. From the army to the bullocks, they were camouflaged in leaves. Before the Japanese came to Ukhrul, he could hear the battle at Harva Khangai – the bombings and gunfights. While he was scared by the noise, he remembered how the folks who had their kin in the army cried through the night saying one of their own could be dying at the moment.

Thangsha Shaiza informed that Linguira became the station for the Japanese. While the Japanese were crawling over the place, Maj Khathing Ralengnao had instructed the village folks that they should place their Phranggee- the red cloth- facing toward the direction where Japanese were halted which would indicate where to bomb.

As the battle ensued, the villagers had to flee to Shirui, then to Lunghar. For Thangsha, the sighting of the British Army at Lunghar village and later returning to Hunphun were as comforting as seeing his own father, a sense of relief.

N Luikham informed that he was in his late teens, shy of 18 years when the Japanese came to Ukhrul. He was a class 5 student at Ukhrul Middle English School. When he heard about the Japanese coming to town, he along with his friend Yangkahao roamed with bows and a case full of arrows.

N Luikham recalls seeing the army vehicles loaded with rucksacks leaving the village (Somsai) on 19th March, Sunday morning. The British army had fled the post.

The first sighting of the Japanese in the village was a shirtless Jap army with a raised sword who entered the deserted camp, and then followed by hundreds of others from all direction. The Japanese had then called for a meeting at the Hunphun Chief’s residence, and the message communicated were– “the Tangkhuls and Japanese are one. Look at your face and ours, the eyes are small and our nose are not high. British and Indians are one. We should fight with each other. We are one”.

N.  Luikham recalls how the Japanese gave away the weak and old bullocks that were no longer fit to run the bullock carts, i.e. 10/20 households were given a bullock each for free. Later, men from the village were demanded as coolie to carry their loads. Luikham himself encountered such incident where he was saved once by his own father and the other by his wit. The Japanese required certain numbers of coolie each day, for instance, 10 for a day and 20 for the next and so on.

The first bombing was carried out in Ukhrul with 12 airplanes. He remembered watching fascinated as the airplanes split into 6 each and one dropped the bomb, to which they thought it was a log. Maiphai from Talui, and Yarteo from Hungpung are few of the people he laments over as victim of the war. He especially laments over the death of Yarteo, who was killed for being unable to bring coolie as directed to him. Yarteo’s body was later discovered by his wife (after the Japanese had left the village), and was recognised by the beaded necklace he wore, known as Chaminao.

Luikham opines, rather humorously, that the effect of the war on the community was that quite a lot of Tangkhuls decided to pursue for higher education in Shillong.

Machung Pheiray informed that he was studying in class 2 at Ukhrul Middle English School when the Japanese army arrived in Ukhrul. He had decided to study in Ukhrul because he received a scholarship of 3 rupee per month.

During the time when the news went around that the Japanese army was approaching, students were asked to return to their respective villages by YK Shimray, Headmaster of Ukhrul ME School. It was on his way back to Phungcham that he crossed Somsai – the British Army Camp- he saw hundreds of British Army assembled, led by Maj Khathing Ralengnao.

Later that night, Pheiray watched Somsai light up, heard gunshots, houses burning, Phungcham villagers shouting that Hunphun is on fire. In the following days, he saw Japanese Army in the village, passing through and en-route to Kohima. He watched how the Japanese gave away old and weak bullock, then demanded coolie to help carry their loads. He remembered Jonathan from INA as the first man to hoist an Indian flag in the village atop a Tarung.

Pheiray also witnessed the fighter planes crashing in Phangrei and one in his village. He recalls watching the sky, fascinated by the sight. Among his fond memories are the bondings of the village folks with the Japanese army. He informed that during June, the Japanese forces while returning from Kohima, had a football match with the Phungcham Village Authority at the village ground and if airplanes were heard, everyone would run back into the houses like nothing was happening.

He laments over his friend Khumzik who was killed by the INA in Halang while on the way back to his village. He was wrongly suspected to be a spy for the British.

Although the war ended in 1944 with Japanese retreat, for Pheiray, the war only ended in 1945. Since the Ukhrul Middle English School was burned down by Japanese forces, Pheiray and his friends were shifted to Talui ME School for further studies.

An incident to which he prefers to call- the last tragedy of the war. Pheiray recalls the grotesque death of 13 of his schoolmates in Talui school, who died after a bomb exploded- bombs left behind by the British during the war.

He joins Luikham in agreeing that education was among the positive effect brought to the community after the war.

A group of people from different walks of life including students witnessed the untold story of Second World War from the elders, who narrated their eye witness account. This is the first kind of its event organised by few likeminded group of youngsters from Ukhrul and the event was sponsored by Charshung- a community center based in Ukhrul.