PUCSL lights up standardisation of socket outlets in Sri Lanka

The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) in collaboration with the respective stakeholders is planning to implement national standards for socket outlets and extension cords. 

The standards will allow only 13 Ampere (A) socket outlets as well as 13 A fused extension cords throughout the country. After the implementation, all multi-plugs and unsafe socket outlets will be disallowed in Sri Lanka. 

This was revealed at the initial meeting held in the premises of PUCSL in partnership with University of Moratuwa, Institute of Engineers Sri Lanka (IESL), RMA Energy Consultants and Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) where experts in the field presented their views.  

The decision was taken in the view of ensuring electrical safety and safety standards which as at now, are compromised as a result of various different types of plugs and socket outlet combinations that are available in the market, which poses a significant safety hazard when coupled with poor standards of electrical installations. 

As SLSI standards currently allow both 5 A and 13 A sockets and even 15 A too, formulation of national standard for socket outlets is a timely requirement to reduce the electricity related accidents. Therefore the design of 13 A has been chosen as the ideal socket outlet after reviewing the international standards. 

The 13A socket outlet and its plug are designed to ensure safety, although it is huge compared to other plugs. The top hole of the outlet contains the activation of a “shutter” which opens the live part of the socket when the top pin is inserted. The size of the rectangular holes is designed not to permit children’s fingers to be inserted.  The shutters do not permit foreign items such as wire clips to be inserted until the earth pin of a plug is inserted. 

The implementation process is done by a committee including academics and industry experts to examine the legal position and prepare regulation to precede the implementation to minimise the quality and safety issues of the multi-way socket outlets and extension cords imported and manufactured in Sri Lanka. Thereafter, importing or manufacturing of anything other than the standard 13 A will be prohibited and all new equipment should have the molded 13 A standard. 

After the implementation of the national standards, a two year time period will be allowed for stocks in the market to be sold out and the ultimate expectation is to have only the standard socket outlets and extension cords in the country by 2035.