Sihalਸਿਹਲ

Where is Sihal?

Sihal is a village in Dirba tehsil of Sangrur district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Malwa region, and the 2011 directory recorded Dirba, about 21 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Sunam community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 039819, and it covers 610 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,620 people in Sihal: 878 men and 742 women, living in 311 households, an average of about 5.2 people per household. Spread over its 610 hectares, the population density works out to about 266 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 845 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 172, about 11 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 399 people, about 25 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 61.74 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 64.74 per cent and women at 58.23 per cent. The census recorded 549 workers, about 34 per cent of the village. Of the 494 main workers, the largest group, 296, were cultivators on their own land, ahead of 130 other workers in trade, transport and services and 67 agricultural labourers. A further 55 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Sihal's land. Of the village's 610 hectares, 557 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (13 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (544 hectares). About 53 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 308 cultivators and 98 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 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.

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 12 hours a day.

Getting there

Sihal is reached by pucca, all-weather roads; the nearest bus service was five to ten kilometres away. The directory recorded Dirba, about 21 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Dirba, the tehsil headquarters, and Sangrur, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Shafipur Kalan, Kadar Nagar Alias Munshiwala, Bagrol and Shafipur Khurd.

What is the population of Sihal?

The population of Sihal was 1,620 at the 2011 census, living in 311 households in Dirba tehsil of Sangrur district.

What facilities does Sihal have?

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