Machhiwaraਮਾਛੀਵਾੜਾ

Where is Machhiwara?

Machhiwara is a village of Zira tehsil in Ferozepur district, Punjab, in the Malwa region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Zira, about 8 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Zira community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 034376, and it covers 286 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 585 people in Machhiwara: 313 men and 272 women, living in 97 households, an average of about 6.0 people per household. Spread over its 286 hectares, the population density works out to about 205 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 869 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 75, about 13 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 148 people, about 25 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 54.71 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 59.93 per cent and women at 48.97 per cent. The census recorded 292 workers, about 50 per cent of the village. Of the 178 main workers, the largest group, 126, were cultivators on their own land, ahead of 36 other workers in trade, transport and services and 16 agricultural labourers. A further 114 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Machhiwara's land. Of the village's 286 hectares, 262 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from wells and tube-wells (262 hectares). About 24 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. With 143 cultivators and 58 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. No government school was recorded inside the village in 2011; the nearest primary school was within five kilometres. The village also had an anganwadi centre.

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 five to ten kilometres away. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 16 hours a day.

Getting there

Machhiwara is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Zira, about 8 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Zira, the tehsil headquarters, and Ferozepur town, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Boola, Shahwala, Baggi Patni Alias Mohkamwala and Bundala Nau.

What is the population of Machhiwara?

The population of Machhiwara was 585 at the 2011 census, living in 97 households in Zira tehsil of Ferozepur district.

What facilities does Machhiwara have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Machhiwara has an anganwadi centre. It had no bank branch inside the village in that record.