Bhokhraਭੋਖੜਾ

Where is Bhokhra?

Bhokhra is a village in Bathinda tehsil of Bathinda district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Malwa region, and the 2011 directory recorded Bathinda, about 3 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Bathinda community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 035741, and it covers 1,180 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 4,399 people in Bhokhra: 2,257 men and 2,142 women, living in 782 households, an average of about 5.6 people per household. Spread over its 1,180 hectares, the population density works out to about 373 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 949 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 523, about 12 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 2,102 people, about 48 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 63.98 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 68.69 per cent and women at 59.08 per cent. The census recorded 1,808 workers, about 41 per cent of the village. Of the 1,561 main workers, the largest group, 571, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 479 agricultural labourers and 461 cultivators on their own land. A further 247 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Bhokhra's land. Of the village's 1,180 hectares, 1,075 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (787 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (288 hectares). About 93 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 12 hours a day. The census recorded 484 cultivators and 597 agricultural labourers, so farming supports many labouring families as well as landholders.

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, 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.

Health facilities recorded inside the village in 2011 included a dispensary and a veterinary hospital. Treated tap water was available in the village. The village had a sub post office. It also had 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

Bhokhra is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Bathinda, about 3 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was within five kilometres. Bathinda, the tehsil headquarters, and Bathinda, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Gill Patti, Khialiwala, Joganand and Har Raipur Urf Bhokhri.

What is the population of Bhokhra?

The population of Bhokhra was 4,399 at the 2011 census, living in 782 households in Bathinda tehsil of Bathinda district.

What facilities does Bhokhra have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Bhokhra has government schools from primary to senior secondary school level, an anganwadi centre and a sub post office. It had no bank branch inside the village in that record.