Akharaਅਖਰਾ

Where is Akhara?

Akhara is a village of Jalandhar West tehsil in Jalandhar district, Punjab, in the Doaba region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Kartarpur, about 15 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Bhogpur community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 030558, and it covers 288 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,148 people in Akhara: 597 men and 551 women, living in 225 households, an average of about 5.1 people per household. Spread over its 288 hectares, the population density works out to about 398 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 923 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 126, about 11 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 715 people, about 62 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 65.56 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 71.29 per cent and women at 59.3 per cent. The census recorded 348 workers, about 30 per cent of the village. Of the 237 main workers, the largest group, 83, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 74 cultivators on their own land and 70 agricultural labourers. A further 111 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Akhara's land. Of the village's 288 hectares, 270 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from wells and tube-wells (270 hectares). About 18 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 78 cultivators and 158 agricultural labourers, so farming supports many labouring families as well as landholders.

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 anganwadi centre and an ASHA health worker.

Health facilities recorded inside the village in 2011 included a dispensary. 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 12 hours a day.

Getting there

Akhara is reached by pucca, all-weather roads; the nearest bus service was within five kilometres. The directory recorded Kartarpur, about 15 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Jalandhar West, the tehsil headquarters, and Jalandhar town, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Jande Sarai, Bullowal, Mangeki and Kurala.

What is the population of Akhara?

The population of Akhara was 1,148 at the 2011 census, living in 225 households in Jalandhar West tehsil of Jalandhar district.

What facilities does Akhara have?

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