Virk Kheraਵਿਰਕ ਖੇਰਾ

Where is Virk Khera?

Virk Khera 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 8 kilometres away, as its nearest town. The village falls in the Malout community development block and has its own gram panchayat. In the census record it carries village code 035274, and it covers 528 hectares.

Population and households

The 2011 census counted 1,696 people in Virk Khera: 891 men and 805 women, living in 347 households, an average of about 4.9 people per household. Spread over its 528 hectares, the population density works out to about 321 people per square kilometre. The sex ratio was 903 women for every 1,000 men. Children up to the age of six numbered 197, about 12 per cent of the village. Scheduled Castes made up 1,083 people, about 64 per cent of the population, and no Scheduled Tribe population was recorded.

Literacy in 2011 stood at 60.17 per cent among residents aged seven and above, with men at 68.87 per cent and women at 50.56 per cent. The census recorded 603 workers, about 36 per cent of the village. Of the 533 main workers, the largest group, 305, were agricultural labourers, ahead of 145 cultivators on their own land and 81 other workers in trade, transport and services. A further 70 people were marginal workers, employed for only part of the year.

Land and farming

Farming covers most of Virk Khera's land. Of the village's 528 hectares, 478 hectares were net sown area in the 2011 record, and every sown hectare was irrigated. Irrigation came mainly from canals (478 hectares). About 50 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 146 cultivators and 365 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 and a dispensary. Drinking water came from untreated tap water supplies. 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 10 hours a day.

Getting there

Virk Khera is reached by pucca roads, and the 2011 directory recorded a private bus service in the village itself. The directory recorded Malout, about 8 kilometres away, as the nearest town, and the nearest railway station was five to 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 Enakhera, Malout Rural, Aulakh and Katorewala.

What is the population of Virk Khera?

The population of Virk Khera was 1,696 at the 2011 census, living in 347 households in Malout tehsil of Sri Muktsar Sahib district.

What facilities does Virk Khera have?

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