Bikaਬਿਕਾ

Where is Bika?

Bika is a village of Banga tehsil in SBS Nagar district, Punjab, in the Doaba region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Banga, about 7 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Banga community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 032187, and it covers 125 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 771 people in Bika: 363 men and 408 women, living in 178 households, an average of about 4.3 people per household. Spread over its 125 hectares, the population density works out to about 617 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 1124 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 82, about 11 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 529 people, about 69 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 83.74 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 90.1 per cent and women at 78.46 per cent. The census recorded 309 workers, about 40 per cent of the village. Of the 232 main workers, the largest group, 189, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 37 cultivators on their own land and 5 agricultural labourers. A further 77 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Bika's land. Of the village's 125 hectares, 108 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (12 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (96 hectares). About 17 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 39 cultivators and 8 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 health facility was recorded inside the village in 2011. 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 five to ten kilometres away. Domestic electricity supply was recorded at 16 hours a day.

Getting there

Bika 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 7 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was five to ten kilometres away. Banga, the tehsil headquarters, and Nawanshahr, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Mander, Khanpur, Sadhpur and Lakhpur.

What is the population of Bika?

The population of Bika was 771 at the 2011 census, living in 178 households in Banga tehsil of SBS Nagar district.

What facilities does Bika have?

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