LUCKNOW, Mar 23: On the way to making cities smarter and conserve electricity, Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited(UPPCL)will commence to distribute light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs to household consumers on nominal cost from next month.
The scheme would be launched in Varanasi next month and then in the Sangam city of Allahabad in May. Official sources here today said that under the scheme, every household having a monthly consumption of less than 200 units of power, will be provided with up to five LED bulbs. Each of these seven watt bulbs costs Rs 104 but would be given to consumers at an initial cost of Rs 10 per bulb while the remaining amount will be adjusted in bills. Likewise, the consumers having more than 200 units of consumption per month would be entitled for a maximum of 10 bulbs and the cost would realized in the same way,officials said. The scheme would be launched in Varanasi from next month and would be gradually extended to 19 other cities in the state, including the six zones of Purvanchal (eastern UP). ‘Each of these high-quality bulbs would be better than what is available in the market at the cost of Rs 700 and will serve the purpose of a 14 watt CFL,’ said the MD. Allahabad will have 50 distributing centers, located on the premises of power substations and some even at public places. The department has developed a system wherein no consumer can cheat the department and avail more than the quota prescribed against monthly consumption limit.
‘Controlled through web network, as soon as a consumer purchases a bulb, it would be locked against his connection number and he or she cannot avail the facility anywhere else, be it the city limit or the state,’ said Sharma. These bulbs would come with a warranty of three years and a life span of over 10 years, all this with the consumption of just seven watts of energy, informed the official. (UNI)