Sheikhowaliਸ਼ੇਇਖੋਵਾਲੀ

Where is Sheikhowali?

Sheikhowali is a village of Batala tehsil in Gurdaspur district, Punjab, in the Majha region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Fatehgarh Churian, about 14 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Dera Baba Nanak community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 028844, and it covers 119 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 215 people in Sheikhowali: 111 men and 104 women, living in 42 households, an average of about 5.1 people per household. Spread over its 119 hectares, the population density works out to about 181 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 937 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 17, about 8 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 73 people, about 34 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 74.75 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 78.43 per cent and women at 70.83 per cent. The census recorded 58 workers, about 27 per cent of the village. Of the 51 main workers, the largest group, 33, were cultivators on their own land, ahead of 15 other workers in trade, transport and services and 3 agricultural labourers. A further 7 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Sheikhowali's land. Of the village's 119 hectares, 110 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (5 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (105 hectares). About 8 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 36 cultivators and 3 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 and one government middle school, so children can study in the village up to Class 8. The village also had an ASHA health worker.

No health facility was recorded inside the village in 2011. It also had a PDS ration shop and 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

Sheikhowali is reached by village roads; the nearest bus service was within five kilometres. The directory recorded Fatehgarh Churian, about 14 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Batala, the tehsil headquarters, and Gurdaspur town, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Alipur Viran.

What is the population of Sheikhowali?

The population of Sheikhowali was 215 at the 2011 census, living in 42 households in Batala tehsil of Gurdaspur district.

What facilities does Sheikhowali have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Sheikhowali has government schools from primary to middle school level. It had no bank branch inside the village in that record.