Bal Kalanਬਾਲ ਕਲਾਂ

Where is Bal Kalan?

Bal Kalan is a village of Amritsar II tehsil in Amritsar district, Punjab, in the Majha region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Amritsar, about 13 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Verka community development block and is served by the Bal--Kalan gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 037614, and it covers 729 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 4,056 people in Bal Kalan: 2,159 men and 1,897 women, living in 728 households, an average of about 5.6 people per household. Spread over its 729 hectares, the population density works out to about 556 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 879 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 510, about 13 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 1,735 people, about 43 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 69.66 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 74.05 per cent and women at 64.73 per cent. The census recorded 1,672 workers, about 41 per cent of the village. Of the 1,384 main workers, the largest group, 1,023, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 191 cultivators on their own land and 137 agricultural labourers. A further 288 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Bal Kalan's land. Of the village's 729 hectares, 474 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (474 hectares). About 255 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 14 hours a day. With 200 cultivators and 189 agricultural labourers in the census, most farm work in the village is done by landholding families themselves.

Schools and facilities

For village facilities, the Census 2011 Village Directory is the fullest record available. Education in the village runs through one government primary school, one government middle school, one government secondary school and one government senior secondary school, so children can study in the village up to Class 12. The village also had an anganwadi centre and an ASHA health worker.

No health facility was recorded inside the village in 2011. Treated tap water was available in the village. The village had a sub post office. It also had a PDS ration shop and mobile phone coverage. Banking was available in the village itself, with a cooperative bank branch. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 18 hours a day.

Getting there

Bal Kalan is reached by village roads; the nearest bus service was five to ten kilometres away. The directory recorded Amritsar, about 13 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was five to ten kilometres away. Amritsar II, the tehsil headquarters, and Amritsar city, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Jahangir, Bhaini Gillan, Sohian Khurd and Muradpura.

What is the population of Bal Kalan?

The population of Bal Kalan was 4,056 at the 2011 census, living in 728 households in Amritsar II tehsil of Amritsar district.

What facilities does Bal Kalan have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Bal Kalan has government schools from primary to senior secondary school level, an anganwadi centre and a sub post office.