New Delhi: Govt. ‘UJALA’ LED bulb scheme So far Rs 20,000 crore has been saved in electricity bills of middle class and poor families, PM Narendra Modi Emphasizing the need for sustainable energy to promote sustainable development, he said on Friday.
“Free distribution of 37 crore LED bulbs under UJALA scheme has resulted in savings of 48,000 million kilowatt-hours, resulting in savings of Rs 20,000 crore for middle class and poor households and reduction in annual carbon emissions by 40 million tonnes Is. Municipal bodies are saving Rs.6 crore annually by using LED bulbs in street lights.
The UJALA scheme was launched in 2016 during Modi’s first term as part of a larger plan to reduce India’s carbon footprint.
The scheme envisaged the replacement of all incandescent and CFL bulbs with more energy-efficient LED lamps. But the high cost of LED bulbs, which were relatively new in the market at the time, posed a challenge.
“The government first encouraged large scale domestic production of LED bulbs to bring down the prices. This allowed the government to start distribution on a large scale,” Modi said, underlining the importance of energy efficiency for sustainable development.
Piyush Goyal, who was then the power minister, took advantage of the scale of government procurement under the scheme to persuade global and domestic manufacturers to reduce the prices of LED bulbs.
Focusing on development of sustainable energy such as battery storage and swapping to promote electric vehicles, green hydrogen and coal gasification in the Budget for 2022-23, the PM reiterated India’s goal of becoming net-zero by 2070.
He urged the industry to invest in manufacturing energy-efficient equipment and offered the government’s full support, saying that energy-efficiency is as important as generating energy for sustainable development.
Noting that India’s energy demand is expected to grow manifold as the economy grows, Modi stressed the need for adopting renewable energy to ensure sustainable growth. He said that India will get 50% of its energy from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030.
“Many see it as a challenge. But I see it as an opportunity,” Modi said.
“Free distribution of 37 crore LED bulbs under UJALA scheme has resulted in savings of 48,000 million kilowatt-hours, resulting in savings of Rs 20,000 crore for middle class and poor households and reduction in annual carbon emissions by 40 million tonnes Is. Municipal bodies are saving Rs.6 crore annually by using LED bulbs in street lights.
The UJALA scheme was launched in 2016 during Modi’s first term as part of a larger plan to reduce India’s carbon footprint.
The scheme envisaged the replacement of all incandescent and CFL bulbs with more energy-efficient LED lamps. But the high cost of LED bulbs, which were relatively new in the market at the time, posed a challenge.
“The government first encouraged large scale domestic production of LED bulbs to bring down the prices. This allowed the government to start distribution on a large scale,” Modi said, underlining the importance of energy efficiency for sustainable development.
Piyush Goyal, who was then the power minister, took advantage of the scale of government procurement under the scheme to persuade global and domestic manufacturers to reduce the prices of LED bulbs.
Focusing on development of sustainable energy such as battery storage and swapping to promote electric vehicles, green hydrogen and coal gasification in the Budget for 2022-23, the PM reiterated India’s goal of becoming net-zero by 2070.
He urged the industry to invest in manufacturing energy-efficient equipment and offered the government’s full support, saying that energy-efficiency is as important as generating energy for sustainable development.
Noting that India’s energy demand is expected to grow manifold as the economy grows, Modi stressed the need for adopting renewable energy to ensure sustainable growth. He said that India will get 50% of its energy from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030.
“Many see it as a challenge. But I see it as an opportunity,” Modi said.