UJALA Scheme
Description
UJALA Scheme
UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All) is part of the Government of India’s efforts to spread the message of energy efficiency in the country.
It aims to promote efficient use of energy at the residential level, enhance the awareness of consumers about the efficacy of using energy efficient appliances and aggregate demand to reduce the high initial costs thus facilitating higher uptake of LED lights by residential users.
Under this scheme, LED bulbs, LED tube lights and energy-efficient fans are being provided to domestic consumers for replacement of the conventional and inefficient variants.
Benefits of LED
A 7W LED bulb provides same amount of light as a 14W Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) and a 60W Incandescent Lamp (ICL) and thereby saves almost 90 per cent energy as compared to ICLs and 50 per cent in case of CFLs. LED bulb consumes one unit of electricity when it is used for 140 hours as compared to two units by CFL and nine units by ICL.
Barriers and challenges that prevented large scale adoption of LEDs
• High initial cost of LEDs as compared to ICLs and CFLs
• Lack of awareness about the reduction of electricity bills by the use of LEDs
• Low appreciation of policymakers at the state and DISCOM level about the benefit of incentivizing efficient lighting
• No incentives to consumers
Solution
PAY-AS-YOU-SAVE (PAYS) – A NEW BUSINESS MODEL
• Providing LED bulbs to households at Rs 10 each
• Balance amount included in electricity bill as Equated Monthly Installment (EMI) over a 5–10-year period
• During the period of EMI, all defective LEDs were replaced
• Information and outreach programme launched to spread awareness amongst consumers
Street Lighting National Programme:
• Traditional street lights have been replaced with smart LED street lights. a. EESL has enrolled 1601 Urban Local bodies and work has been completed in 1060 Urban Local Bodies.
• Entire upfront investment by EESL and repayment through deemed savings model.
• 7-year contract with municipalities guaranteeing minimum energy saving (of typically 50%) and free maintenance of lights.
Facts and Figures
• As per the data of UJALA dashboard, 13,31,79,689 LEDs bulbs were distributed as on July 19, 2016, the number increased to 36,86,86,920 as on January 04, 2023.
• The procured price of LED bulbs reduced by almost 90 per cent between 2014 to 2017; from Rs. 310 to Rs. 38.
• India became the largest driver of global LED demand. In 2013-14 India’s contribution to global demand for LED was 0.1 per cent which increased to 12 per cent in 2015-16.
• UJALA programme has also caught global attention. International Energy Agency (IIEA) has published a case study on same. IIEA, in its report, published that UJALA is reducing annual household electricity bills by about 5 per cent, saving consumers over 16 billion rupees every year.
• The UJALA programme has also attracted the attention of Management Schools and entire programme is now a Leadership case study in Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad and is under consideration of being included in Harvard Business School.
Gram Ujala
Building on the UJALA Scheme, CESL (100% owned subsidiary of EESL) has rolled out Gram Ujala program to provide LED bulbs at INR 10 per build and create an ecosystem of energy-efficient appliances for rural homes. It is targeting to reach 15 million people and save 1.8 million tCO2e per year. The scheme was launched on March 19, 2022, in Bihar. Gram UJALA program is currently running successfully in the states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka.
