Indian IS1293 – India, Pakistan, Nepal

We stock 6A 2 pin Indian-C7, 6A 3 pin Indian-C7, Indian-C13 and to a stripped end, along with 16A 3 pin Indian-C13, Indian-C19 and stripped end. Other specifications can be produced on demand, for example, different lengths, colours, or end connectors. These are the Longwell LP-67 (3 pin 6A), LP-68 (3 pin 16A), and LP-77 (2 pin 6A).

Cable is IS694, YY pvc, either flat for 2 core or circular for 3 core from stock; other types are available for special order.

Indian plug and socket markings

Plugs and sockets must be marked with: a) rated current (A); b) rated voltage (V);  c) symbol for nature of supply (~); d) manufacturer’s name, trade-mark or logo; e) type reference (part number); f) IP rating (if higher than IP2x); g) country of manufacture. Voltage and current ratings can be abbreviated to initialisms, e.g. ’16 A 250 V AC’, or even shorter ’16/250~’. When marked, live, neutral and earth connections may also be abbreviated to ‘L’, ‘N’, and ‘E’ or ‘⏚’.

Indian plug pin sizes

Pin dimensions are in the table below. 2.5A ungrounded plugs are the same as 6A, but without the earth. 10A plugs are also identical to the 6A. Tolerances are length +1.04mm/-0.13mm and diameter +0.025mm/-0.050mm.

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us

Exporting to Mumbai, New Delhi, Kolkata, or Bangalore and not sure which plugs to send with the equipment? The Republic of India has the world’s largest population and a rapidly growing economy, meaning more and more products are being shipped there. Getting the right plug is critical, especially after some reasonably recent legal changes.

Type D plugs and type M plugs are mainly used on the Indian subcontinent, including India itself, neighbouring Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, and is also found in some older installations or specific geographic areas in Burma / Myanmar and the island nation of Sri Lanka.

Type D and type M are also two of the plug types used in several African countries, although in this case the South African specification and approvals should be used, not Indian, as the approvals and cable types are not interchangeable.

International convention is for socket outlets to provide 10A; the Indian type D sockets are only 6A, which may pose a problem with some electrical equipment designed to draw >6A <10A. There are long term plans to replace Indian 6A sockets with 10A rated sockets of identical physical dimensions. For this reason we stock C13 cables with both plug types, one rated maximum 6A and the other max. 10A. 6A, 10A, and 16A plugs and sockets must be capable of accepting cable sizes from 0.75mm to 1.5mm inclusive.

Contact us for a full list or with any questions or queries and our technical team will be happy to help.

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us

The Indian 6A plug is rated 250V and has three round pins with a larger, longer earth pin; this should make contact first and break contact last. The unearthed version removes the earth pin and has a smaller plug body. There is also a proportionately larger Indian 16 Amp rated plug, which is used for larger appliances.

The standard setting out requirements for the plugs is Indian Standard IS 1293 Plugs and Socket-Outlets of rated voltage up to and including 250 volts and rated current up to and including 16 amperes and was first published in 1958 by the Bureau of Indian Standards. Later editions have superseded the 1971 IS 6538 Specification for three-pin plugs made of resilient material, so this is no longer applicable.

IS 1293 applies to plugs and both fixed and portable socket outlets, 50V to 250V AC, up to and including 16 A current, and includes cord sets and extension leads. It specifically excludes plugs and sockets for industrial purposes or electric vehicles, appliance couplers (see IS 3010), and fixed sockets incorporating fuses or automatic switches.

Both 6A and 16A plugs are unfused; fuses are optional, but in practice not widely used. The two plugs are not interchangeable due to large difference in size, although dual sockets which accept both types do exist.

Indian sockets may be either shuttered or unshuttered (limiting insertion of foreign objects), and have normal or increased protection (the degree of accessibility of current carrying parts when disassembled). Maximum ambient temperature is 35°C; occasional use up to 45°C is permitted.

It is a legal requirement for Indian plugs and cable to meet the IS 1293 and IS 694 standards, and be approved by the Bureau of Indian Standards. This requirement dates from February 2003, but still surprises companies exporting to India. A full list of products with compulsory certification is available from BIS.

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us

The Indian standards document setting out the manufacturing requirements is IS1293, which is a development of the old British standard BS546 previously used throughout the Indian subcontinent. The dimensions are largely similar, the unit of measurement being changed from inches to millimetres. The current ratings increased by 1 amp so that BS546 5A and 15A became IS1293 6A and 16A respectively.

Morvan Trading 6 Amp plugs for India meet IS 1293 as do the 16A Indian. Approval can be by the BIS ISI mark, which we use, or STQC (Standardisation Testing and Quality Certification). Use of the ISI mark is governed by the Bureau of Indian Standards Act 1986.

ISI is an initialism of the Indian Standards Institution, which originally dates from 1860, and was incepted in its current form in 1946 for the partition of British India (into India and Pakistan). It later changed its name to the Bureau of Indian Standards in 1978, and is the National Standards Body of India. The mark and logo remained the same, so is still ‘ISI’ in a rounded square, despite the name change.

In addition to an ISI approved plug, the mains power cord supplied with any Indian plug should also comply with the IS694 standard and be ISI approved.

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us