Asafwalaਅਸਫਵਾਲਾ

Where is Asafwala?

Asafwala is a village in Fazilka tehsil of Fazilka district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Malwa region, and the 2011 directory recorded Fazilka, about 10 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Fazilka community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 035111, and it covers 329 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,752 people in Asafwala: 926 men and 826 women, living in 389 households, an average of about 4.5 people per household. Spread over its 329 hectares, the population density works out to about 533 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 892 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 249, about 14 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 1,562 people, about 89 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 56.29 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 65.75 per cent and women at 45.61 per cent. The census recorded 520 workers, about 30 per cent of the village. Of the 342 main workers, the largest group, 158, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 116 agricultural labourers and 58 cultivators on their own land. A further 178 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Asafwala's land. Of the village's 329 hectares, 276 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (246 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (30 hectares). About 49 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 8 hours a day. The census recorded 60 cultivators and 198 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 2 government primary schools, one government middle school and one government secondary school, so children can study in the village up to Class 10. 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. It also had mobile phone coverage. It had no bank branch or ATM in the 2011 record; the nearest bank was five to ten kilometres away. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 12 hours a day.

Getting there

Asafwala is reached by pucca, all-weather roads; the nearest bus service was five to ten kilometres away. The directory recorded Fazilka, about 10 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was five to ten kilometres away. Fazilka, the tehsil headquarters, and Fazilka town, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Kabul Shah Hithar, Gharumi, Mambeke and Pacca Chishti.

What is the population of Asafwala?

The population of Asafwala was 1,752 at the 2011 census, living in 389 households in Fazilka tehsil of Fazilka district.

What facilities does Asafwala have?

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