Akharaਅਖਰਾ

Where is Akhara?

Akhara is a village in Jagraon tehsil of Ludhiana district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Malwa region, and the 2011 directory recorded Jagraon, about 5 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Jagraon community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 033767, and it covers 1,271 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 4,548 people in Akhara: 2,450 men and 2,098 women, living in 960 households, an average of about 4.7 people per household. Spread over its 1,271 hectares, the population density works out to about 358 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 856 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 463, about 10 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 1,902 people, about 42 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 71.77 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 75.07 per cent and women at 67.94 per cent. The census recorded 1,578 workers, about 35 per cent of the village. Of the 1,484 main workers, the largest group, 581, were cultivators on their own land, ahead of 480 agricultural labourers and 407 other workers in trade, transport and services. A further 94 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 1,271 hectares, 1,039 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (78 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (961 hectares). About 230 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 12 hours a day. With 583 cultivators and 550 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, one government secondary school and one government senior secondary school, so children can study in the village up to Class 12. 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. Drinking water came from untreated tap water supplies. The village had its own post office. It also had mobile phone coverage. Banking was available in the village itself, with a cooperative bank branch. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 14 hours a day.

Getting there

Akhara is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Jagraon, about 5 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was five to ten kilometres away. Jagraon, the tehsil headquarters, and Ludhiana city, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Bhamipura, Roomi, Randhirgarh and Chhajjawal.

What is the population of Akhara?

The population of Akhara was 4,548 at the 2011 census, living in 960 households in Jagraon tehsil of Ludhiana district.

What facilities does Akhara have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Akhara has government schools from primary to senior secondary school level, an anganwadi centre and a post office.