Sikhwalaਸਿਖਵਾਲਾ

Where is Sikhwala?

Sikhwala is a village of Malout tehsil in Sri Muktsar Sahib district, Punjab, in the Malwa region of the state. The 2011 directory recorded Malout, about 17 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Lambi community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 035295, and it covers 1,231 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 4,425 people in Sikhwala: 2,342 men and 2,083 women, living in 845 households, an average of about 5.2 people per household. Spread over its 1,231 hectares, the population density works out to about 359 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 889 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 568, about 13 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 2,151 people, about 49 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 64.07 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 72.09 per cent and women at 54.93 per cent. The census recorded 1,890 workers, about 43 per cent of the village. Of the 1,717 main workers, the largest group, 1,018, were agricultural labourers, ahead of 342 cultivators on their own land and 272 other workers in trade, transport and services. A further 173 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Sikhwala's land. Of the village's 1,231 hectares, 1,026 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (1,026 hectares). About 76 hectares were under non-agricultural uses such as the village settlement, roads and ponds. Farm power supply was recorded at 6 hours a day. The census recorded 376 cultivators and 1,093 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.

Health facilities recorded inside the village in 2011 included a primary health sub-centre, a dispensary and a veterinary hospital. 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

Sikhwala is reached by pucca, all-weather roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Malout, about 17 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was more than ten kilometres away. Malout, the tehsil headquarters, and Sri Muktsar Sahib, the district headquarters, are the practical hubs for administration and onward travel. Neighbouring villages include Khudian Mohan Singh, Punjawa, Khudian Gulab Singh and Kakhanwali.

What is the population of Sikhwala?

The population of Sikhwala was 4,425 at the 2011 census, living in 845 households in Malout tehsil of Sri Muktsar Sahib district.

What facilities does Sikhwala have?

According to the Census 2011 Village Directory, Sikhwala 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.