Chashmaਚਸ਼ਮਾ

Where is Chashma?

Chashma is a village in Pathankot tehsil of Pathankot district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Majha region, and the 2011 directory recorded Dina Nagar, about 14 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Pathankot community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 027571, and it covers 202 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 901 people in Chashma: 465 men and 436 women, living in 166 households, an average of about 5.4 people per household. Spread over its 202 hectares, the population density works out to about 446 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 938 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 114, about 13 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 447 people, about 50 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 74.33 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 81.89 per cent and women at 66.41 per cent. The census recorded 314 workers, about 35 per cent of the village. Of the 311 main workers, the largest group, 242, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 49 cultivators on their own land and 20 household industry workers. A further 3 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Chashma's land. Of the village's 202 hectares, 168 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (97 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (71 hectares). About 34 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 16 hours a day. With 52 cultivators and 0 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.

No health facility was recorded inside the village in 2011. Treated tap water was available in the village. 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 five to ten kilometres away. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 16 hours a day.

Getting there

Chashma is reached by pucca, all-weather roads; the nearest bus service was more than ten kilometres away. The directory recorded Dina Nagar, about 14 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was five to ten kilometres away. Pathankot, the tehsil headquarters, and Pathankot, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Jakrawar, Bassi Afghana, Papial and Gujrat.

What is the population of Chashma?

The population of Chashma was 901 at the 2011 census, living in 166 households in Pathankot tehsil of Pathankot district.

What facilities does Chashma have?

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