British-era hydro power plant lying defunct in Amritsar
AMRITSAR : A hydro-electric power house constructed by Britishers in 1930 here, is lying in a dilapidated condition and has been non-functional since decades. The condition of the power house paints a picture of poor upkeep and neglect by the authorities.
The hydro-electric plant, which is situated at AmritsarJalandhar road, near Taran wala bridge, was constructed at the main branch lower (MBL) canal. The MBL canal originates from upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC), one of the oldest canals in India, built by Emperor Shah
Jahan in 1693.
It is of historical importance as the electricity generated from the house was supplied to the city including the Golden Temple. Despite tall claims made by the government to restore heritage and tourism sites in the city, the British era power house has lost its glory.
Rakesh Sharma, a social worker said, “The machinery for generating electricity was brought from England and Switzerland by the British. The main reason behind it being non-functional is the poor upkeep of the canal. The power house can be reused to generate hydro-electricity.”
Balbir Singh, a vendor, who is living near the power house from past 60 years said, “Soon after the partition, the power house was shut down. No caretaker has been assigned at the site. As a result, most of the machineries have been robbed.”
Due to lack of maintenance, the electricity generating turbines and motors are out of order now.
Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), superintendent engineer,
Lal Krishan said, “Electricity cannot be generated at the power house now. We need the water level of the canal to be above five metres. At present, the water is not enough to generate electricity at the canal. The depleting water level, especially in Punjab is a major concern for
the future.”
RESTORATION WORK IN LIMBO
The restoration project of the historic power house has been assigned to Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) project under the ministry of housing and urban affairs.
Gurmeet Rai, a well known conservation architect and anchor of the Amritsar HRIDAY project said, “The building and structure of the power house was restored in October 2018. When we reached the site to restore it, the machinery operating wires and equipments were missing and the turbines are non-functional. We had plans to turn the heritage site into performing art space and tourist site.”
Rai said, “While working on the spot, the lining of the canal collapsed as gates were opened. The drawings of landscape development are ready with us but we are concerned about the safety of people. The site can only be restored if the lining is fixed just like it was in the British era. We are making efforts to work with the irrigation and canal department to start working on the canal lining.”