UP govt to give cheaper LED bulbs to those who pay their power bills on time

By NewsGram Staff Writer

The Uttar Pradesh government has come up with an innovative idea to conserve energy in its capital city, Lucknow. The state has directed the power companies to distribute LED bulbs to the consumers, who have no dues towards electricity bill, at a cheaper rate. A consumer with a meter load of up to 2KW will get five LED bulbs, while those who have a higher meter load will receive around ten bulbs. This measure has been taken under the Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP) that will provide the consumers with LED bulb worth Rs. 400 at a much cheaper rate of Rs. 135.

This measure would not only influence the consumers to pay their electricity bills on time, but it would also lead to energy conservation. The LED bulbs consume 85% less energy as compared to ordinary bulbs that waste 90% of the energy as heat. Also, LED bulbs are environment- friendly as they do not contain mercury.

When it comes to replacing or buying bulbs, cost is one of the biggest factor which affects people's decision. Therefore, many people prefer to buy CFLs or incandescent bulbs as they are available at cheaper rates than LEDs. However, what people don't realize is that the actual cost includes more than the upfront price of the product; how much the product will cost in an overall usage over the years is also an important factor in deciding its actual cost.

It is expected that the step taken by UP government will encourage more people to switch to LED bulbs, which would ultimately lead to conservation of energy. The Lucknow Electricity Supply Administration (LESA) is preparing a database of consumers for the distribution of bulbs and is planning to start the process in a month.