IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - September/October 2020 - 99

were not ready to take the opportunity.
Subsequently, the state's engineer-incharge was authorized to investigate
the possibility of erecting a factory
capable of annually producing 1,000
tons. If successful, the endeavor would
be another tribute to the Kashmir enterprise. However, efforts made to introduce the use of artificial fertilizer
met with resistance from the conservative public. In addition, the cost was
a deterrent.

Epilogue
The state of Jammu and Kashmir,
although governed by an independent
ruler, remained within the spheres
of British influence until 1947. The
measures taken for development were
not entirely of region's own initiative
but influenced by the Western mind.
Kashmir saw its world-famed industries decaying during the late 1800s.
European machines were imitating the
prized handmade shawls produced in
Kashmir; silk and other manufactures
were suffering due to the scarcity of
fuel. The enterprise of Kashmir Durbar and the availability of western
ideas that were within easy reach introduced the possibility of reviving
industries, preventing the frequent inundation of the valley, and improving
communication with the outside world
by utilizing electric power.
It was estimated that roughly 1 million hp could be developed from the
untapped capacity of the waters flowing within the state. But until the transport difficulty with the outside world
was solved, it was futile to develop
more water power, as excessive shipping costs would neutralize the cheap
production. The scheme for electric traction between Sarai Kala and Srinagar
was considered impracticable. Maharaja then preferred a communication line
along the royal route: the Srinagar-viaBanihal pass to Jammu. It was expected that construction of the new mode of
communication would begin, but various problems connected with the project apparently caused indefinite de-

september/october 2020

lays. Hence, it was not felt necessary
to enhance the output of the Mohra
power station to its ultimate capacity,
and the infrastructure thus remained
grossly underutilized (Figure 4).
The Mohra Hydroelectric Plant was
maintained as efficiently as possible,
and it functioned well despite the fact
that all the machinery had outlived its
useful life and sustained damaged during the 1947 skirmishes. After half a
century of service, the power plant was
still operating at 80% of its capacity
in the mid-1950s. The skirmishes had
snapped the power supply to Srinagar,
and during the most trying times, the
valley was plunged into darkness.
Dredging was intermittently used
to clean silt, boulders, and debris from
the Jhelum River until 1926. The yearly inundation of the whole countryside was stopped for some time before
the dredging was given up altogether.
The power generated in Mohra was
thus mainly used to light the towns of
Sopore and Baramulla and the city of
Srinagar. Dredging didn't appear to be
an effective remedy for dealing with
the drainage problem facing the valley. The deep bed that dredging made
quickly refilled with silt and sediments
carried by the Jhelum and its tributaries. The Kashmir valley had no coal
reserves, and the forests were not capable of supplying fuel for more than
the people's daily needs, hence leaving very little for industries, such as
the silk factories, that required steam.
The electricity from Mohra was used
to heat 2,000 filature basins in the
state silk factory at Srinagar as well as
power oil-crushing operations and run
wool and rice-husking mills.
In July 1959, the valley was faced
wit h unprecedented f loods. T he
Mohra powerhouse was badly stricken and washed away. Srinagar was
plunged into darkness for a fortnight
until the power supply from another
hydroelectric plant, Ganderbal (1955),
was restored. Although the Ganderbal
powerhouse was not affected by the
floods, the canal feeding it was choked

with boulders and shingles, requiring
extensive repairs to be made. It was
decided to shift the Mohra powerhouse
farther upstream to a safer place,
although this would cause a significant head loss. A new plant had to be
installed. It was commissioned in 1962
in cooperation with Ganz, Hungary.
The new powerhouse had machines
with a higher capacity (two units at
4.5 MW) and a standard frequency
(50 Hz). One of the Hungarian engineers apparently lost his life to an electrical shock during the commissioning.
The new Mohra powerhouse was struck
by heavy floods in 1992. Since then,
it has mostly been nonoperational due
to a variety of reasons, and efforts are
being made by the local authorities to
revive the project, including a refurbished old iconic wooden flume.

Acknowledgment
Thank you to Chris Hunter of miSci-
Museum of Innovation and Science,
Schenectady, New York, for provid ing images for consideration of
this article.

For Further Reading
H. Homberger, "Jhelum hydro-electric
power plant," J. Electr. Power Gas,
vol. 26, no. 5, pp. 109-117, Feb. 4, 1911.
S. Orling, "The Jhelum power installation," Gen. Electr. Rev., vol. 12, no. 7,
pp. 293-298, July 1909.
S. Orling, "The Jhelum power installation, part II," Gen. Electr. Rev.,
vol. 12, no. 8, pp. 356-362, Aug. 1909.
S. Narayan, The Hydro-electric Installations of India. Gwalior, India: Y.
T. Mangaokar, 1922.
B. C. Chatterjee, The Hydro-Electric Practice in India, vols. 1 and 2.
Benares, India: Shiva Narayan Chatterjee, 1936.
H. D. Baker, "British India with notes
on Ceylon, Afghanistan and Tibet,"
Dept. of Commerce, Olympia, WA, Special Consular Rep. No. 72, 1915.
F. Younghusband, Kashmir. London: A&C Black, 1909.
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