Zirakhਜ਼ਿਰਖ

Where is Zirakh?

Zirakh is a village of Payal tehsil in Ludhiana district, Punjab, in the Malwa region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Maloud, about 9 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Dehlon community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 033316, and it covers 263 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,331 people in Zirakh: 714 men and 617 women, living in 244 households, an average of about 5.5 people per household. Spread over its 263 hectares, the population density works out to about 506 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 864 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 111, about 8 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 552 people, about 41 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 81.07 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 84.5 per cent and women at 77.22 per cent. The census recorded 496 workers, about 37 per cent of the village. Of the 470 main workers, the largest group, 303, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 142 cultivators on their own land and 25 agricultural labourers. A further 26 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Zirakh's land. Of the village's 263 hectares, 233 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from wells and tube-wells (233 hectares). About 30 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 146 cultivators and 32 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, so children can study in the village up to Class 5. The village also had an anganwadi centre and an ASHA health worker.

No human health facility was recorded inside the village in 2011; a veterinary hospital served its livestock. Treated tap water was available in the village. 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

Zirakh is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Maloud, about 9 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Payal, the tehsil headquarters, and Ludhiana city, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Siarh, Hans (Payal), Jhamat (Payal) and Bhikhi Khutra.

What is the population of Zirakh?

The population of Zirakh was 1,331 at the 2011 census, living in 244 households in Payal tehsil of Ludhiana district.

What facilities does Zirakh have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Zirakh has a government primary school and an anganwadi centre. It had no bank branch inside the village in that record.