Balਬਾਲ

Where is Bal?

Bal is a village in Amritsar II tehsil of Amritsar district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Majha region, and the 2011 directory recorded Amritsar, about 8 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Verka community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 037623, and it covers 143 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 753 people in Bal: 393 men and 360 women, living in 153 households, an average of about 4.9 people per household. Spread over its 143 hectares, the population density works out to about 527 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 916 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 75, about 10 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 18 people, about 2 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 78.17 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 80.12 per cent and women at 76.13 per cent. The census recorded 265 workers, about 35 per cent of the village. Of the 262 main workers, the largest group, 142, were cultivators on their own land, ahead of 107 other workers in trade, transport and services and 13 agricultural labourers. A further 3 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Bal's land. Of the village's 143 hectares, 118 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (118 hectares). About 25 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 12 hours a day. With 143 cultivators and 14 agricultural labourers in the census, most farm work in the village is done by landholding families themselves.

Schools and facilities

The Census 2011 Village Directory gives the fullest picture of village facilities. Education in the village runs through one government primary school and one government middle school, so children can study in the village up to Class 8. The village also had an anganwadi centre and an ASHA health worker.

No health facility was recorded inside the village in 2011. It also had a PDS ration shop and mobile phone coverage. It had no bank branch or ATM in the 2011 record; the nearest bank was within five kilometres. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 12 hours a day.

Getting there

Bal is reached by village roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a public bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Amritsar, about 8 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 Sehchandar, Heir, Miran Kot Kalan and Miran Kot Khurd.

What is the population of Bal?

The population of Bal was 753 at the 2011 census, living in 153 households in Amritsar II tehsil of Amritsar district.

What facilities does Bal have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Bal has government schools from primary to middle school level and an anganwadi centre. It had no bank branch inside the village in that record.