It was 10 years ago that Professor Dilip R. Ahuja and I published a paper based on our studies on Indian Standard Time, comparing the relative benefits of three options.
One option was to have two different time zones. A second one was to go for a Daylight Saving Scheme, that is, Winter Time and Summer Time as prevalent in a number of countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and other European countries. A third option was to advance Indian Standard Time by half an hour, which would mean IST will be six hours ahead of GMT instead of the present 5½ hours (in Winter Time).
We found that the third option would lead to the maximum energy saving of about 2.7 billion units of electricity every year and a of 16-17% peaking energy and cause minimum perturbation while meeting the demand of the northeastern region halfway, that is, advancing IST for that region by a half hour instead of one hour as demanded. Our project was funded by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) and examined by a committee comprising 30 members. It was presented to the Ministry of Power and the Planning Commission.
There have been discussions in Parliament to consider having two time zones, one in the east and northeast and the other for the west.
Comparisons are drawn between the U.S. and India; questions are being asked as to why we cannot have two time zones when the eastern and western regions are separated in distance by two hours’ travel while the U.S. has four time zones. It may be pointed out that the two countries are not comparable. India has 13 times the population density as compared to the U.S. Some 30% of India’s population is illiterate. Single-track railway lines with manual control at many places may add to our already high number of train accidents. Moreover, having to adjust the time every time one crosses the time zone will cause endless trouble, particularly for the poor.
In other countries
In the U.S., the lines separating the zones are mostly across deserts and mountains and people usually fly across these zones. China, which spreads much farther than India, has only a single time zone, the standard time having been advanced by one hour.
India spans longitudes of 68° at the western end and 98° at the eastern boundary and as there is a difference of one hour for every 15° of longitude, the two extremes differ by two hours.
We have observed that a very large number of countries advance, and seldom retard, their standard time, being anxious to meet the sun sooner than later. If we ignore the implicit hazards or political repercussions of “dividing” the country into two time zones, let us consider the options:
Have the Eastern zone at 6½ hours ahead of GMT, while the rest of the country will remain at 5½ hours as of now. The longitude will run through the eastern-most part of Arunachal Pradesh and partly through Burma, the energy saving will be less (<1 billion units a year) than the option of advancing since energy consumption in the eastern zone is relatively low.
It will meet the demand of the people in the northeastern zone all right but will leave the anxiety of people taking political advantage of this ‘division’ unaddressed.
It has been said that a different time zone advancing the IST for the East will be a “wake-up” call for people in the east and the northeast. This is but dubious.
To have the Eastern Time zone at 6 and the Western zone at 5 hours will lead to energy loss since lights will be turned on sooner in the west and the north and the south and the saving from the advancement in the east will be less than the energy lost from the western zone.
To reiterate our proposal to advance IST by half an hour, the advantages are: The change has to be made just once and there is no need to change time every time one crosses the zone in a highly populated zone. The demand from the northeast will be met halfway. There will be maximum energy saving among different options. The longer evening will also make it safer for working women. Also, we will be in sync with 97% of the nations, whose standard times are integers and not fractions like our 5½.
Finally, the whole nation will go to bed half an hour sooner and wake up half an hour sooner, and this will provide the opportunity to respond to the clarion call of the Prime Minister for the whole nation to do physical exercise (Yoga) instead of remaining in bed.
Important option
The last-mentioned option should not be dismissed. Most of us lazily watch television late in the night. That is when we should go to bed. A large number among us sleep through sunlight in the morning. That is when we should wake up and do some physical exercise. As a nation we shall use more sunlight. Once this habit gets embedded in us we will grow as a healthier nation.
The author retired as a Professor from the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency commissioned a study by him and Professor Dilip R. Ahuja on quantifying energy savings by means of advancing IST, based on a paper published by them in Current Science in 2007. Their report was submitted to the BEE in September 2011. sengupta.dp@gmail.com
