UJALA Scheme:
The Ministry of Power has successfully completed seven years of distributing and selling LED lights under its flagship UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All) programme.
- The initiative evolved into the world’s largest zero subsidy domestic lighting programme with more than 36.78 crore LEDs distributed across the country.
- Launched in 2015 and initially labeled as the LED-based Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP), it aims to promote the efficient usage of energy for all i.e., its consumption, savings and lighting.
- Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a government company under the administrative control of the Ministry of Power, has been designated as the implementing agency for this programme.
- Every domestic household having a metered connection from their respective Electricity Distribution Company is eligible to get the LED bulbs under the Scheme.
- UJALA succeeded in bringing down the retail price of LED (Light-Emitting Diode) bulbs from INR 300-350 per bulb to INR 70-80 per bulb.
- Apart from making affordable energy accessible to all, the programme also resulted in massive energy savings. As of today, 47,778 Million kWh per annum energy has been saved.
- Further, there has been 3,86 crore tonnes of reduction in CO2 emissions.
- It provides an impetus to the domestic lighting industry. It encourages Make in India as domestic manufacturing of LED bulbs has increased from 1 lakh per month to 40 million per month.
