Kharkanਖਰਕਨ

Where is Kharkan?

Kharkan is a village in Hoshiarpur tehsil of Hoshiarpur district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Doaba region, and the 2011 directory recorded Hoshiarpur, about 10 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Hoshiarpur-II community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 031484, and it covers 1,152 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 2,529 people in Kharkan: 1,547 men and 982 women, living in 363 households, an average of about 7.0 people per household. Spread over its 1,152 hectares, the population density works out to about 220 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 635 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 234, about 9 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 549 people, about 22 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 89.11 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 92.94 per cent and women at 82.92 per cent. The census recorded 1,582 workers, about 63 per cent of the village. Of the 1,402 main workers, the largest group, 1,257, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 91 cultivators on their own land and 51 agricultural labourers. A further 180 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Kharkan's land. Of the village's 1,152 hectares, 91 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (51 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (40 hectares). About 166 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 15 hours a day. With 112 cultivators and 91 agricultural labourers in the census, most farm work in the village is done by landholding families themselves.

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 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.

No health facility was recorded inside the village in 2011. 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 five to ten kilometres away. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 15 hours a day.

Getting there

Kharkan is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Hoshiarpur, about 10 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was five to ten kilometres away. Hoshiarpur, the tehsil headquarters, and Hoshiarpur city, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Patiari, Chak Harnoli, Dalewal and Naru Nangal Khas.

What is the population of Kharkan?

The population of Kharkan was 2,529 at the 2011 census, living in 363 households in Hoshiarpur tehsil of Hoshiarpur district.

What facilities does Kharkan have?

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