Balaghat District Census 2011–2025: Population | Sex Ratio | Literacy

Balaghat District Madhya Pradesh Census 2025/2011 – Population, Growth, Religion, Sex Ratio, Literacy, SC/ST, Rural/Urban, Language, Tehsil/Taluk Dat

Balaghat,​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ a district in the Jabalpur division of Madhya Pradesh, is stretched over 9,229 sq.km with almost half of its area being forest. The population was 1.7 million in 2011 which is projected to reach around 2 million by 2031. The district is proud of a sex ratio of 1,021 females per 1,000 males and a literacy rate of 77.09%. About 13.14% of the people are residing in urban areas, while 86.87% are in villages, which shows that the district is predominantly rural and its population is slowly ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌increasing.

Quick Overview of Balaghat District Census 2021

• District Name: Balaghat
• State: Madhya Pradesh
• Headquarters: Balaghat town
• Geographical Region: Jabalpur division, south‑eastern Madhya Pradesh
• Area (geographical): about 9,229 sq.km
• Forest Area: about 4,921 sq.km (around half of district area)
• Population 2011 (district, standard census): 1,701,698 (17.02 lakh)
• Male Population 2011: 842,178
• Female Population 2011: 859,520
• Population 2001 (district): 1,497,968 (14.98 lakh)
• Population Growth 2001–2011: 13.56% (about 13.6%)
• Share in State Population 2011: about 2.3–2.4%
• Projected Population 2021 (district): about 1,890,000 (18.98 lakh)
• Projected Population 2025 – table 1: about 1,950,000 (19.59 lakh)
• Projected Population 2031 (district): about 2,000,000 (20.01 lakh)
• Overall Sex Ratio 2011: 1,021 females per 1000 males
• Sex Ratio 2001: about 1,022 females per 1000 males
• Child Sex Ratio (0–6, district): around 974–975 girls per 1000 boys
• Population Density 2011: about 184 persons per sq.km (using 9,229 sq.km)
• Urbanisation 2011: about 13–14% urban, 86–87% rural
• Total Literacy Rate 2011 (district): 77.09%
• Male Literacy Rate 2011: 85.36%
• Female Literacy Rate 2011: 69.04%
• Total Households 2011 (district): 391,836

Population – 2011 vs 2001 (District)

Description	2011	2001
Actual Population	1,701,698	1,497,968
Male Population	842,178	740,749
Female Population	859,520	757,219
Population (in Lakhs)	17.02	14.98
Decadal Population Growth	13.56%	about 22–23%
Area (sq.km)	9,229	9,229
Population Density (per sq.km)	about 184	about 162
Sex Ratio (females per 1000 males)	1,021	1,022

Population Projections – Balaghat District 2011–2031

Year	Projected Population	Population (Lakhs)
2011 (actual)	1,701,698	17.02
2021	1,890,000	18.98
2022	1,910,000	19.17
2023	1,930,000	19.33
2024	1,940,000	19.47
2025	2,070,468	20.70
2026	1,960,000	19.69
2027	1,970,000	19.77
2028	1,980,000	19.85
2029	1,990,000	19.91
2030	1,990,000	19.96
2031	2,000,000	20.01

Urban and Rural Population – Balaghat District 2011

Area	Population Share	Total Population	Male Population	Female Population	Sex Ratio
Rural	about 86–87%	around 1,470,000	about 725,000	about 745,000	about 1,028
Urban	about 13–14%	around 230,000	about 117,000	about 113,000	about 965–970

Child Population (0–6 years) – Balaghat District 2011

• Total children (0–6 years) in the district are a bit over 13% of the population (around 220,000–230,000 children, as reported in detailed handbook tables).
• Child sex ratio (0–6) is roughly 974–975 girls per 1000 boys at district level.

Overall Literacy – Balaghat District 2011

Item	Total	Male	Female
Literacy Rate	77.09%	85.36%	69.04%
Approximate Literate Population	about 1.12–1.13 million	around 0.70 million	around 0.43 million

Religion-wise Population – Balaghat District 2011

Religion	Population	Percent of Total
Hindu	1,519,384	89.29%
Buddhist	72,162	4.24%
Other religions and persuasions	58,064	3.41%
Muslim	38,542	2.26%
Others (Christian, Sikh, Jain, not stated)	small remainder	about 1%

Literacy Rate by Religion – Balaghat District 2011

Religion	Average Literacy Rate (%)	Male Literacy Rate (%)	Female Literacy Rate (%)
Hindu	76.70	85.00	68.61
Buddhist	84.64	93.12	76.61
Other religions and persuasions	67.85	78.10	58.21
Muslim	87.95	93.12	82.68

SC / ST Population – Balaghat District 2011

• In Balaghat tehsil, Scheduled Castes number 22,609 (11,103 males; 11,506 females) and Scheduled Tribes number 38,967 (19,033 males; 19,934 females), giving a sense of strong ST presence.

Languages Spoken – Balaghat District 2011

Language (First Language)	Share of Speakers (%)
Hindi (including related varieties)	40.85% (plus another 9.55% classified as other Hindi varieties)
Marathi	16.41%
Powari	9.64%
Gondi	9.35%
Chhattisgarhi	5.33%
Lodhi	5.22%
Kalari	1.18%
Other minor languages	small remainder

Administrative Units – Tehsils and Villages (District)

• Balaghat district is divided into multiple tehsils and blocks; one tehsil‑focused table lists these tehsils along with their population details.

#	Tehsil Name	District
1	Baihar	Balaghat
2	Balaghat	Balaghat
3	Khairlanji	Balaghat
4	Katangi	Balaghat
5	Lanji	Balaghat
6	Lalbarra	Balaghat
7	Kirnapur	Balaghat
8	Paraswada	Balaghat
9	Waraseoni	Balaghat

Balaghat Tehsil – Detailed Census 2011 Snapshot

Item	Total	Urban	Rural
Population	269,352	109,903	159,449
Children (0–6 years)	31,488	11,099	20,389
Scheduled Caste Population	22,609	12,224	10,385
Scheduled Tribe Population	38,967	8,013	30,954
Literacy Rate	82.35%	89.60%	77.19%
Sex Ratio	1,015	991	1,031

Balaghat Tehsil – Religion-wise Population 2011

Religion	Count	Percentage (Tehsil)
Hindu	230,250	85.48%
Muslim	13,174	4.89%
Buddhist	12,736	4.73%
Other religions and persuasions	8,108	3.01%

Balaghat Tehsil – Literacy Rate by Religion 2011

Religion	Average Literacy Rate (%)	Male Literacy Rate (%)	Female Literacy Rate (%)
Hindu	81.81	88.71	75.05
Muslim	90.64	93.98	87.35
Buddhist	88.26	94.72	82.06
Other religions and persuasions	66.57	77.72	56.21

Balaghat Municipality (City) – Census 2011 & 2025

Item	Value
City Type	Municipality
Total Population 2011	84,261
Male Population 2011	43,644
Female Population 2011	40,617
Sex Ratio (city)	931 females per 1000 males
Literacy Rate (city)	91.38% (very high urban literacy)
Projected Population 2025 (city region)	about 100,000 (city) and over 120,000 (urban region)

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: What is Balaghat district population in 2011?
  A: 1,701,698 people (about 17.02 lakh).
• Q: What is the projected population in 2025?
  A: Projections range from about 19.6 lakh to about 20.7 lakh, depending on the method.
• Q: What is the sex ratio in Balaghat?
  A: About 1,021 females per 1000 males overall in 2011.
• Q: How much of the population is rural vs urban?
  A: Roughly 86–87% live in rural areas and 13–14% in urban areas.
• Q: What is the literacy rate?
  A: Overall literacy is 77.09%; male literacy 85.36% and female literacy 69.04%.
• Q: Which religions are most common in the district?
  A: Hinduism (about 89.3%) followed by Buddhism (about 4.2%), with smaller shares of other religions.
• Q: How strong is the tribal population?
  A: The district has a large Scheduled Tribe population, especially visible in tehsil data where ST shares are high.
• Q: Which languages are mainly spoken?
  A: Mix of Hindi and its varieties plus Marathi, Powari, Gondi, Chhattisgarhi, Lodhi and Kalari.
• Q: What is the population of Balaghat town?
  A: 84,261 people as per the 2011 census.
• Q: What are the main tehsils in Balaghat?
  A: Key tehsils include Baihar, Balaghat, Khairlanji, Katangi, Lanji, Lalbarra, Kirnapur, Paraswada and Waraseoni.