Nighiਨਿਘੀ

Where is Nighi?

Nighi is a village in Balachaur tehsil of SBS Nagar district in Punjab, India. It lies in the Doaba region, and the 2011 directory recorded Balachaur, about 14 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Balachaur community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 032428, and it covers 556 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 848 people in Nighi: 438 men and 410 women, living in 189 households, an average of about 4.5 people per household. Spread over its 556 hectares, the population density works out to about 153 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 936 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 112, about 13 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 21 people, about 2 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 68.75 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 78.74 per cent and women at 58.03 per cent. The census recorded 490 workers, about 58 per cent of the village. Of the 276 main workers, the largest group, 132, were agricultural labourers, ahead of 66 other workers in trade, transport and services and 54 cultivators on their own land. A further 214 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Nighi's land. Of the village's 556 hectares, 160 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (92 hectares) and wells and tube-wells (68 hectares). About 240 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 8 hours a day. The census recorded 57 cultivators and 204 agricultural labourers, so farming supports many labouring families as well as landholders.

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 and one government secondary school, so children can study in the village up to Class 10. The village also had an anganwadi centre and an ASHA health worker.

Health facilities recorded inside the village in 2011 included a dispensary and a veterinary hospital. Treated tap water was available in the village. The village had a sub post office. 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

Nighi is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Balachaur, about 14 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Balachaur, the tehsil headquarters, and Nawanshahr, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Balewal, Jandi, Mohan Majra and Tundewal.

What is the population of Nighi?

The population of Nighi was 848 at the 2011 census, living in 189 households in Balachaur tehsil of SBS Nagar district.

What facilities does Nighi have?

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