Balowalਬਲੋਵਲ

Where is Balowal?

Balowal is a village in Banga tehsil of SBS Nagar district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Doaba region, and the 2011 directory recorded Banga, about 14 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Aur community development block and is served by the Balobal gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 032179, and it covers 185 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,036 people in Balowal: 523 men and 513 women, living in 208 households, an average of about 5.0 people per household. Spread over its 185 hectares, the population density works out to about 560 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 981 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 91, about 9 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 248 people, about 24 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 80.42 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 84.4 per cent and women at 76.52 per cent. The census recorded 371 workers, about 36 per cent of the village. Of the 274 main workers, the largest group, 136, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 128 cultivators on their own land and 10 agricultural labourers. A further 97 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Balowal's land. Of the village's 185 hectares, 173 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (8 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (165 hectares). About 12 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 6 hours a day. With 135 cultivators and 14 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.

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 five to ten kilometres away. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 12 hours a day.

Getting there

Balowal is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Banga, about 14 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Banga, the tehsil headquarters, and Nawanshahr, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Lidhar Kalan, Rehpa, Sarhal Qazian and Hakimpur.

What is the population of Balowal?

The population of Balowal was 1,036 at the 2011 census, living in 208 households in Banga tehsil of SBS Nagar district.

What facilities does Balowal have?

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