Ahalਅਹਲ

Where is Ahal?

Ahal is a village of Faridkot tehsil in Faridkot district, Punjab, in the Malwa region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Guru Har Sahai, about 8 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Faridkot community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 035502, and it covers 286 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,267 people in Ahal: 674 men and 593 women, living in 196 households, an average of about 6.5 people per household. Spread over its 286 hectares, the population density works out to about 443 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 880 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 151, about 12 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 431 people, about 34 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 56.81 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 61.96 per cent and women at 51.21 per cent. The census recorded 574 workers, about 45 per cent of the village. Of the 462 main workers, the largest group, 176, were cultivators on their own land, ahead of 136 agricultural labourers and 76 other workers in trade, transport and services. A further 112 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Ahal's land. Of the village's 286 hectares, 242 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (225 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (17 hectares). About 40 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 186 cultivators and 164 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, 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. Drinking water came from untreated tap water supplies. 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 18 hours a day.

Getting there

Ahal is reached by pucca, all-weather roads; the nearest bus service was within five kilometres. The directory recorded Guru Har Sahai, about 8 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Faridkot, the tehsil headquarters, and Faridkot town, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Chak Seman, Deep Singhwala, Kanianwali and Chak Deep Singhwala.

What is the population of Ahal?

The population of Ahal was 1,267 at the 2011 census, living in 196 households in Faridkot tehsil of Faridkot district.

What facilities does Ahal have?

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