Moonak is a town and a

nagar panchayat A nagar panchayat () or town panchayat or Notified Area Council (NAC) in India is a settlement in transition from rural to urban and therefore a form of an urban political unit comparable to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 12,00 ...

in Sangrur district in the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

. Moonak is situated near the Punjab-Haryana border. The nearest towns of Haryana are Jakhal Mandi and Tohana. The nearest commercial airport to Moonak is at Chandigarh which is 150 km from here. The majority of people are engaged in

farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

and

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

activities.

Demographics

The Moonak has population of 18,141 of which 9,475 are males while 8,666 are females as per report released by Census India 2011. The population of Children with age of 0-6 is 2325 which is 12.82% of total population of Moonak. In Moonak, Female Sex Ratio is of 915 against state average of 895. Moreover, child sex ratio in Moonak is around 863 compared to Punjab state average of 846. The literacy rate of the town is 67.68%, which is lower than state average of 75.84%. While male literacy is around 73.54% and female literacy rate is 61.33%. The table below shows the population of different religious groups in Moonak city, as of 2011 census.

History

Moonak was originally known as Akalgarh. There is an old fort 'Qila Mubarik' said to have been built in the Muslim period. In the fort, there was a well with unhealthy water. Hardened prisoners of

Patiala State Patiala State was a kingdom and princely state in Presidencies and provinces of British India, British India, and one of the Phulkian States, that Instrument of Accession, acceded to the Dominion of India, Union of India upon Indian independence ...

were sent to this place where they died after a few days. The town is a

Tehsil A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a Zila (country subdivision), district including the designated populated place that ser ...

of the Sangrur district. It is surrounded by Ghaggar, a seasonal river which causes floods during monsoon. In 1988, 1992, 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023, floods led to loss of crops, death and destruction in and around the areas. People are demanding its deepening.

Climate

Moonak has similar climate like other places in

North India North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...

. It has profile of semi-arid climate. During the months of June and July, the temperature rises to 44 °C. In December and January, the temperature falls to around 10 °C. In monsoons, Moonak receives average rainfall.

Major business activities

Most of the population depends on agriculture and farming. There are also some small-scale industries: * Incense manufacturing * Sushil Dhoop Industries * Punjabi University College * Swami Vivekanand College * Lord Mahavira College * Lord Shiva College of Nursing * Hastings English Academy * Agriculture machine manufacturing * Wine and whiskey making (Karail) * PVC pipe manufacturing * Fertilizer factory * Rice mills * Brick making * Furniture manufacturing * Karan and Malkeet organic agriculture farms

Notable people

* Gurbachan Singh Talib - author- Conferred with

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan (IAST: ''Padma Bhūṣaṇa'', lit. 'Lotus Decoration') is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 Januar ...

in 1985 * Brish Bhan - advocate- Last Chief Minister PEPSU in 1955

Nearby towns

* Pattran * Khanauri * Sunam * Lehragaga * Jakhal Mandi * Makror Sahib * Tohana * Karail

References

{{Sangrur district Cities and towns in Sangrur district