The Government of India is likely to invest ₹450 crore on the Gram Ujala programme in Andhra Pradesh to help the State in reducing the burden of electricity bills on rural households and in bringing down the peak power demand substantially.
Under the programme, Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), contemplated distributing around 4.40 crore LED bulbs to about 81.50 lakh rural households in the State, according to an official release.
CESL Managing Director and CEO Mahua Acharya met Minister for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy on Tuesday, and discussed the implementation of the programme and requested him to finalise a convenient date for launching it.
‘A.P. a frontrunner’
Ms. Acharya told Mr. Reddy that Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh were the frontrunners in rolling out energy efficiency programmes, which prompted the Union government to select them for the programme.
The CESL has already launched the programme in Bihar and U.P., and Andhra Pradesh would be the third State to launch it as per the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) protocols of the United Nations.
Under Gram Ujala, 7-Watt and 12-Watt LED bulbs would be given to the eligible rural households at ₹10 each on their submitting the 60-Watt and 100-Watt incandescent bulbs that are in working condition.
Mr. Reddy thanked Ms. Acharya for selecting Andhra Pradesh for the distribution of a maximum of five LED bulbs per household at ₹10 each without imposing any burden on the State government.
‘Consumes less, lasts longer’
Ms. Acharya said LED was a highly energy efficient lighting technology, and that residential LED bulbs use at least 75% less energy than the conventional ones and last 25 times longer.
“The CESL is looking forward to launching the programme in Andhra Pradesh, which will give a further boost to its energy efficiency programmes,” she added.
