History of Electricity in Punjab: First connection issued to Amritsar DC 110 yrs ago.....by Manmohan Singh
Electricity generation in India began on a commercial scale nearly 127 years ago, in 1899. Among the pioneering states, Punjab issued its first electricity connection exactly 110 years ago, on 8 February 1916.
According to Er. Gursharan Singh Khaira, Deputy Chief Engineer, City Operation Circle, Amritsar, Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), records retrieved from the oldest electricity department office near Hall Gate, Amritsar, reveal that the first connection was sanctioned by the then Chief Electrical Engineer, H.C. Greenwood.
On 11 December 1915, the Municipal Electricity Department submitted an application requesting the installation of the first electricity connection at the residence of the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar, C.M. King. Based on this request, the first work order (Work Order No. 1) was issued on 8 February 1916, instructing the applicant to deposit ₹55 for the release of the electricity connection.
According to Er. Ratan Mittal, Chief Engineer, South Operation Zone, PSPCL, Mrs. Sarita became the one-crore (10 millionth) electricity consumer of PSPCL after obtaining a domestic electricity connection. Her electricity bill was issued on 31 July 2021.
As per PSPCL records, electricity tariffs in 1917 were eight annas per unit, with a 25 percent rebate. The site of the Upper Bari Doab Canal, where turbines were installed in 1915 to generate electricity for Amritsar, has been preserved under the Heritage Project.
After PSPCL took over the electricity departments of Municipal Councils and Municipal Corporations in 1995, the organization has completed a long and significant journey of expansion and modernization.
Present Status of Electricity Consumers in Punjab
At present, PSPCL supplies electricity to approximately 10.7 million consumer premises across various categories:
- 7.928 million domestic connections
- 1.257 million commercial connections
- 1.391 million agricultural connections
- 0.157 million industrial connections
- 6,414 other connections
February 8, 2026
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Manmohan Singh, Public Relations Consultant Ex.Dy Secy,P.R.,PSPCL
iopspcl@gmail.com
Phone No. : 8437725172
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