ELECTROCUTIONS DOWN BY 50% AGAINST 2012 - PUCSL

Sri Lanka has reduced electrocutions by 50 per cent to 89 in 2018 compared with the 180 electrocutions reported in 2012, the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) said yesterday.

The latest statistics show, males are more exposed to electrocutions as 83% from total electrocutions reported in 2018 were males. “According to the international benchmark, the possibility of occurring electrocution is only one (01) electrocution for one million people, per year. In 2012, Sri Lanka was at the position of nine (09) electrocutions for one million people which has now reduced to five (5) electrocutions for one million people per year by 2018,” the PUCSL report said.

As the safety regulator of the industry the PUCSL has taken various measures to aware the public on the safe use of electricity and has introduced many regulatory tools including the framework for licensing of electricians national standard for plugs and sockets rules and regulations with regard to the minimum distance of power lines to the premises and etc. to create an electrical safety environment for public and premises.