Thopiaਥੋਪਿਆ

Where is Thopia?

Thopia is a village of Balachaur tehsil in SBS Nagar district, Punjab, in the Doaba region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Balachaur, about 3 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 032439, and it covers 392 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 2,526 people in Thopia: 1,302 men and 1,224 women, living in 523 households, an average of about 4.8 people per household. Spread over its 392 hectares, the population density works out to about 644 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 940 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 301, about 12 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 485 people, about 19 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 69.39 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 82.07 per cent and women at 56.12 per cent. The census recorded 784 workers, about 31 per cent of the village. Of the 289 main workers, the largest group, 229, were other workers in trade, transport and services, ahead of 34 agricultural labourers and 18 cultivators on their own land. A further 495 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Thopia's land. Of the village's 392 hectares, 326 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from wells and tube-wells (326 hectares). About 63 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 10 hours a day. The census recorded 88 cultivators and 100 agricultural labourers, so farming supports many labouring families as well as landholders.

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, 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.

Health facilities recorded inside the village in 2011 included a dispensary. Treated tap water was available in the village. The village had a sub post office. 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 10 hours a day.

Getting there

Thopia is reached by pucca, all-weather roads; the nearest bus service was five to ten kilometres away. The directory recorded Balachaur, about 3 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the village has its own railway station. Balachaur, the tehsil headquarters, and Nawanshahr, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Nawanpind Taprian, Takarla, Dhaul and Adoana.

What is the population of Thopia?

The population of Thopia was 2,526 at the 2011 census, living in 523 households in Balachaur tehsil of SBS Nagar district.

What facilities does Thopia have?

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