Balokeਬਲੋਕੇ

Where is Baloke?

Baloke is a village in Tapa tehsil of Barnala district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Malwa region, and the 2011 directory recorded Tapa, about 14 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Sehna community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 040059, and it covers 679 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,303 people in Baloke: 694 men and 609 women, living in 254 households, an average of about 5.1 people per household. Spread over its 679 hectares, the population density works out to about 192 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 878 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 141, about 11 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 414 people, about 32 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 59.64 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 60.48 per cent and women at 58.67 per cent. The census recorded 407 workers, about 31 per cent of the village. Of the 333 main workers, the largest group, 193, were cultivators on their own land, ahead of 105 agricultural labourers and 35 other workers in trade, transport and services. A further 74 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Baloke's land. Of the village's 679 hectares, 597 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (316 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (281 hectares). About 82 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 8 hours a day. With 195 cultivators and 163 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, so children can study in the village up to Class 5. 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. 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

Baloke is reached by pucca roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Tapa, about 14 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Tapa, the tehsil headquarters, and Barnala town, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Mauran (Patiala), Sandhu Kalan, Jaimal Singhwala and Nainewala.

What is the population of Baloke?

The population of Baloke was 1,303 at the 2011 census, living in 254 households in Tapa tehsil of Barnala district.

What facilities does Baloke have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Baloke has a government primary school and an anganwadi centre. It had no bank branch inside the village in that record.