74GB, Anupgarh, India

=Location and description=

----"Chak" refers to village in Punjabi language. Chak Number 74 GB is a small village in northern Rajasthan, India. The village falls under the administrative unit (Tehsil) of Anupgarh in District Sriganganagar. The number 74 refers to the serial number of settlement on the canal (the Karani-ji branch of Gang Canal), number 1 being the first settlement at the origin of that particular branch of canal. The letters "GB" denote the official suffix allocated to the Karani-ji branch of Gang Canal (each settlement along this branch carries a serial number and this suffix, e.g. 1GB, 2 GB, 74GB, etc.). However, the local population generally believes that GB refers to 'Gagghar Basin'- the area irrigated by the Karani-ji branch is largely the basin of seasonal Gagghar River. Karani-ji branch originates near the town of Jaitsar and terminates near Anupgarh. Chak 74 GB is located approximately 8 kilometers northeast of the town of Anupgarh and approximately 125 kilometers south-west from the district headquarters of Sriganganagar on Sriganganagar-Raisinghnagar-Bikaner Road. The links below shows the village on Google map.

tatistics and history

----Population of 74GB is approximately 300, consisting of Sikh and Hindu families (around 50% each). All of the Sikh families are land owners, who migrated to this region from the Punjab around 1928, when the canal was built by Maharaja Ganga Singh of the former Bikaner state. Hindu families are the original inhabitants of this region; however, there were no permanent settlements in this area (except for a few towns under the old Bikaner state). Therefore, most Sikh and Hindu families settled in the villages around the same time (after permanent settlements began once canal was built). Not many Hindu families own land within the boundaries of 74GB (in fact it may be only one or two); while a few of them own land elsewhere. Predominant language of 74GB is Punjabi (the language that Sikh families brought with them from the Punjab), while the original language of Hindu families is Bagri. The State language is Hindi. Most people speak Punjabi, Bagri and Hindi fluently. Punjabi is not the common language taught at the primary school level, therefore, only a small portion of people can actually read or write Punjabi (Punjabi has a different script, called Gurumukhi). General instruction in schools is in Hindi and most people read, write and do most of their business in Hindi. Students can elect to learn (read and write) Punjabi at school only when the enter grade six.

Indian society is generally divided into caste system, with caste lines driving most social interactions. The population of 74GB can be divided into two main castes - Most of Hindu families belong to " nayak"="" caste,="" while="" a="" handful="" of="" families="" belong="" to="" "kumhar"="" caste.="" almost="" all="" sikh="" "kamboja"="" caste="" (same="" as="" the="" ancient="" kamboja="" tribe="" northwest="" india).="" inter-caste="" marriages="" are="" non-existent.The village economy is entirely dependent on agricultural activities. Most of Sikh families are employed in farming activities, while most of Hindu families work as support workers within the farming. A few people commute to nearby towns and work in other areas - such as construction, tailoring, etc.

tatistics and history

----Population of 74GB is approximately 300, consisting of Sikh and Hindu families (around 50% each). All of the Sikh families are land owners, who migrated to this region from the Punjab around 1928, when the canal was built by Maharaja Ganga Singh of the former Bikaner state. Hindu families are the original inhabitants of this region; however, there were no permanent settlements in this area (except for a few towns under the old Bikaner state). Therefore, most Sikh and Hindu families settled in the villages around the same time (after permanent settlements began once canal was built). Not many Hindu families own land within the boundaries of 74GB (in fact it may be only one or two); while a few of them own land elsewhere. Predominant language of 74GB is Punjabi (the language that Sikh families brought with them from the Punjab), while the original language of Hindu families is Bagri. The State language is Hindi. Most people speak Punjabi, Bagri and Hindi fluently. Punjabi is not the common language taught at the primary school level, therefore, only a small portion of people can actually read or write Punjabi (Punjabi has a different script, called Gurumukhi). General instruction in schools is in Hindi and most people read, write and do most of their business in Hindi. Students can elect to learn (read and write) Punjabi at school only when the enter grade six.

Indian society is generally divided into caste system, with caste lines driving most social interactions. The population of 74GB can be divided into two main castes - Most of Hindu families belong to " nayak"="" caste,="" while="" a="" handful="" of="" families="" belong="" to="" "kumhar"="" caste.="" almost="" all="" sikh="" "kamboja"="" caste="" (same="" as="" the="" ancient="" kamboja="" tribe="" northwest="" india).="" inter-caste="" marriages="" are="" non-existent.The farmland in 74GB is made up of very rich soil and produces wheat, cotton, mustard, cantaloupe and lots of vegetables. It rains very little in Rajasthan; therefore, the primary source of irrigation is canal water. Some farmers have dug up deep wells and harvest groundwater for irrigation to supplement canal water.

tatistics and history

----Population of 74GB is approximately 300, consisting of Sikh and Hindu families (around 50% each). All of the Sikh families are land owners, who migrated to this region from the Punjab around 1928, when the canal was built by Maharaja Ganga Singh of the former Bikaner state. Hindu families are the original inhabitants of this region; however, there were no permanent settlements in this area (except for a few towns under the old Bikaner state). Therefore, most Sikh and Hindu families settled in the villages around the same time (after permanent settlements began once canal was built). Not many Hindu families own land within the boundaries of 74GB (in fact it may be only one or two); while a few of them own land elsewhere. Predominant language of 74GB is Punjabi (the language that Sikh families brought with them from the Punjab), while the original language of Hindu families is Bagri. The State language is Hindi. Most people speak Punjabi, Bagri and Hindi fluently. Punjabi is not the common language taught at the primary school level, therefore, only a small portion of people can actually read or write Punjabi (Punjabi has a different script, called Gurumukhi). General instruction in schools is in Hindi and most people read, write and do most of their business in Hindi. Students can elect to learn (read and write) Punjabi at school only when the enter grade six.

Indian society is generally divided into caste system, with caste lines driving most social interactions. The population of 74GB can be divided into two main castes - Most of Hindu families belong to " nayak"="" caste,="" while="" a="" handful="" of="" families="" belong="" to="" "kumhar"="" caste.="" almost="" all="" sikh="" "kamboja"="" caste="" (same="" as="" the="" ancient="" kamboja="" tribe="" northwest="" india).="" inter-caste="" marriages="" are="" non-existent.Education

tatistics and history

----Population of 74GB is approximately 300, consisting of Sikh and Hindu families (around 50% each). All of the Sikh families are land owners, who migrated to this region from the Punjab around 1928, when the canal was built by Maharaja Ganga Singh of the former Bikaner state. Hindu families are the original inhabitants of this region; however, there were no permanent settlements in this area (except for a few towns under the old Bikaner state). Therefore, most Sikh and Hindu families settled in the villages around the same time (after permanent settlements began once canal was built). Not many Hindu families own land within the boundaries of 74GB (in fact it may be only one or two); while a few of them own land elsewhere. Predominant language of 74GB is Punjabi (the language that Sikh families brought with them from the Punjab), while the original language of Hindu families is Bagri. The State language is Hindi. Most people speak Punjabi, Bagri and Hindi fluently. Punjabi is not the common language taught at the primary school level, therefore, only a small portion of people can actually read or write Punjabi (Punjabi has a different script, called Gurumukhi). General instruction in schools is in Hindi and most people read, write and do most of their business in Hindi. Students can elect to learn (read and write) Punjabi at school only when the enter grade six.

Indian society is generally divided into caste system, with caste lines driving most social interactions. The population of 74GB can be divided into two main castes - Most of Hindu families belong to " nayak"="" caste,="" while="" a="" handful="" of="" families="" belong="" to="" "kumhar"="" caste.="" almost="" all="" sikh="" "kamboja"="" caste="" (same="" as="" the="" ancient="" kamboja="" tribe="" northwest="" india).="" inter-caste="" marriages="" are="" non-existent.----The village has had a government run primary school (grade 5) since 1940s. No effort was made by villagers for decades to get this school upgraded to a higher level. The school has been upgraded to a middle school with classes up to 8th grade over the last few years. However, many families have started sending their children to schools in Anupgarh for "better" and more expensive education - especially those who can afford it. Education level among the older population has very low with most people educated up to primary level and some completely illiterate. However, this has been changing over the past 20 - 25 years for families with enough resources. Some families started sending their children to larger cities, near and far, for higher education. First student from this village got his grade ten diploma in 1975 and the next three in 1981. First graduate with a university degree emerged in 1985 and then there was a stream of these students with more degrees. Some of these first graduates went even further and obtained higher professional education. The village saw its first chartered accountant in early 1990s. Since then scores of other students have gone for higher education in a variety of fields, a few got their masters degrees in commerce and one or two in science fields - but the village has not yet produced a single engineer or a doctor. This change in educational profile has been a very difficult process due to low levels of education among the parents and general absence of higher education institutions in the area (there is now a colleage in Anupgarh, next one is 50 kilometers away in Raisinghnagar and then a few more in Sriganganagar). Nearest university is 150 kilometers away in Bikaner, however, that is considered almost out of bounds due to many cultural barriers for the mostly Punjabi population of this area (Bikaner is not a Punjabi town as against Sriganganagar, therefore, most people prefer to go to Sriganganagar rather than Bikaner). There has been no plan on the part of the state government to establish a university in the area or even in Sriganganagar, which is sizeable city (population approximately 225,000).

tatistics and history

----Population of 74GB is approximately 300, consisting of Sikh and Hindu families (around 50% each). All of the Sikh families are land owners, who migrated to this region from the Punjab around 1928, when the canal was built by Maharaja Ganga Singh of the former Bikaner state. Hindu families are the original inhabitants of this region; however, there were no permanent settlements in this area (except for a few towns under the old Bikaner state). Therefore, most Sikh and Hindu families settled in the villages around the same time (after permanent settlements began once canal was built). Not many Hindu families own land within the boundaries of 74GB (in fact it may be only one or two); while a few of them own land elsewhere. Predominant language of 74GB is Punjabi (the language that Sikh families brought with them from the Punjab), while the original language of Hindu families is Bagri. The State language is Hindi. Most people speak Punjabi, Bagri and Hindi fluently. Punjabi is not the common language taught at the primary school level, therefore, only a small portion of people can actually read or write Punjabi (Punjabi has a different script, called Gurumukhi). General instruction in schools is in Hindi and most people read, write and do most of their business in Hindi. Students can elect to learn (read and write) Punjabi at school only when the enter grade six.

Indian society is generally divided into caste system, with caste lines driving most social interactions. The population of 74GB can be divided into two main castes - Most of Hindu families belong to " nayak"="" caste,="" while="" a="" handful="" of="" families="" belong="" to="" "kumhar"="" caste.="" almost="" all="" sikh="" "kamboja"="" caste="" (same="" as="" the="" ancient="" kamboja="" tribe="" northwest="" india).="" inter-caste="" marriages="" are="" non-existent.A handful of young people are now working outside the village in larger cities and a couple of them have even migrated abroad to pursue higher education and high paying professional careers. The countries that the people have migrated to include Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Even though some people have gone for higher education and got settled outside of the village, the general education level among the villagers is still very low. The farming, which is the primary occupation of the villagers, has not seen any substantial change or benefit from the new technologies or knowledge base that is available to people. Tractors arrived in the village in mid-seventies, however, the irrigation system has not changed at all, therefore, the supply of water to the farms is very erratic and has infact deteriorated over the years with the state government just collecting taxes and spending the money in other parts of the state on the expense of this area. Political leadership is non-existent in the area - with elected representatives showing up every five years to get reelected and then disappearing for the enxt five years.