Spiritual Status: There are no known churches in any Pangan village. Believers are forced to convert back to Islam or are expelled from their villages. This makes reaching them very, very difficult. Until now, there are no known efforts to bring the gospel to this people.
Who Are the Pangan People?
The Pangans (also known as Muslim Meiteis) are located primarily in Manipur (Northeastern State in India). Some of the Pangans were laborers for the King of Manipur before India was colonized by England; they’ve mostly immigrated from Myanmar and Bangladesh. Scripture in print/translated or audio recordings in Musalmani Manipuri is not available yet.
The Pangans (this is what they refer to themselves, but others call Pangal) of India, are a small group of about 280,000 people in 80 villages scattered across the plains of Manipur. This Muslim minority group in a majority Hindu country, with the caste system, geographic barriers and tribal tensions – most feel isolated. Many are poor. Some suffer in subhuman living conditions resulting from ethnic rivalry with other clans and people groups.The literacy rate among Pangans is 58.6 percent (male 75 percent and female 41.6 percent) much below Manipur state’s average of 70.5 percent.