Chennai: Power-starved Tamil Nadu has not shown a keen interest yet to undertake LED distribution under the Demand Side Management Scheme-based Lighting Efficient Programme (DLEP) even though Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps have a huge potential for saving power. LED lamps, which cost more, conserve more energy than CFL bulbs. Experts predict an energy saving of 800-900 mw given that there are 1.71 crore domestic consumers. Puducherry has successfully completed its LED distribution scheme while Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala have decided to implement it.


A senior official from Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) said that they had sent a note to all the state governments on the DELP, but there had been no response from Tangedco. “The other southern states – Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have shown keen interest in the scheme,” the official said, noting that Puducherry had successfully completed the distribution of LEDs to all domestic households at a cost of Rs10 each.

A senior Tangedco official said that the state government would take the decision on implementing the LED distribution scheme. “So far, there is no proposal to take up such a scheme in the state,” the official said, adding that it was too early to assess its success. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) and Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture of four power sector PSUs, have developed the DLEP programme.

Under DLEP, EESL procures LED bulbs in bulk and sells them to households at Rs10, instead of the market price of Rs 400. The electricity distribution companies then repay EESL over a period of five to eight years from the savings that accrue due to the use of this energy efficient lighting technology. For a state like Tamil Nadu which faces huge power shortage, the implementation of the LED lamps distribution scheme will help reduce power consumption, says Prof S. Iniyan, director of the Institute of Energy Studies, Anna University.

“Long term benefits in terms of energy saving will be much more than the initial investment,” he said. Stressing that conservation of energy was a must, S. Gandhi, president of the Power Engineers Society of Tamil Nadu, said that the scheme should first target users of generators and commercial consumers, not domestic consumers. “Instead of going in for populist schemes, we should adopt a scientific approach to energy conservation,” he said.