THE ECONOMIC TIMES MUMBAI FRIDAY 12 DECEMBER 2008
Thenot a never-ending treas-
ureearth
troveunfortunately
of resources. is
The rate at which we are now
consuming energy is a cause.
for concern. But starting
December 12- WorldEnergy
Day - we as Indians can alter
this. We need to make a differ-
ence arid ensure that we make
a large country, India has dual
efficient
available use ofofthe
to us.
requirements
As a growingeconomyenergy and
energy.We
currently rank as the world's
eleventh biggest energy pro-
ducer, accounting for about 2.4
percent of the world's total
annual energy.production.
Subsequently, we are the
world's sixth largest energy
consumer accounting for
about 3.3 percent of the world's
total annual energy consump-
tion. With
sources
leading
fordemand rising,
energy willrise,
India's dependence
to growing.eon external _.'
missions
causing irreversible changes.
Natural resources are
depleting and although
India is the third-largest
producer of hard coal
after China and the
US, lndia also
imports around
1.4million bar-
rels of oil per
day - 60 per
cent of its total
needs. This
dependency is
projected to .
grow to 85 per
cent by 2010
and to over 90
per cent by 2020.
India's crude oil
imports are pro-
jected to reach 5
million barrels per day
in 2020,which is more
than 60 per cent of current
Saudi Arabian oil production.
The demand may outstrip the
supply one day unless we act
fast. . of greenhouse gases as a result
The uses of these natural
. ~-. resources~in'e-varied:-Electrieity-
-has leng-beencdocum.entedas..a_.__ , Rv.ery...indivichIal£.an h~p~_JJ<:[)J!ghtil!g-!lla
is major form of energy and on
the power generation front
. - nearly-62pereent-ofpower-is
__ generated using coal fired ther- fied into two major parts -
mal power plants while 70 per-
year in India has been used for
cent of the
.thermal coal produced
generation. every
Fossilfuels
for long have been the initial
sources of energy even in India.
However,constant use of fossil
fuels has led to large-scale
problems. The greenhouse
effect, caused by the emission
VlOW t 0 .save .
W· .
orld Energy. -Day'
of burning up these fossil fuels, to GlobalWarming.
major source of trouble for
environmental safety.
--GQnsumptionGan-be-Glas~eil:-home&LED-is-the-latg.~
industrial and domestic. The
major energy consumer
industrial
accountingsector in India
for nearly is a
50 per-
cent of energy produced. The
Indian industry is a highly
energy-intensive one and its
energy-GDPelasticity is
around 1.5- far higher than
the developed nations.
Indian
industries have
been regarded as a
role model across
the world when it
comes to soeial
responsibility.Energy
saving is today the top in a dents ofPune is simple.The
list of social responsibilities
of every individual. Energysav- electricity cost for streetlights
ing measures also helps in cur-
tailing pollution that is one of
the major factors contributing
reduce 'pollution by simply
changing the way they light·
entrant in Indian lighting mar-
ket, which not only helps save
pared to conventional lighting
energy up but
products, to 87
is percent com-
also pollution
free. LED-basedlights do not
contain harmful gases or rays
and can playa major role in
maintaining environmental
cleanliness.
LED-basedlights can be
used for various purposes
in India.
including
proof,
ers areclean
Let'stake
andstreet now room,
lights
a lookat flame
freelyavailable
among
this case
oth-
study to highlighthow effective
LED-basedlightsare when it
come to energyand cost saving.
Consider Pune in Maha-
rashtra. Pune has approximate-
ly 1,50,000street lights, most of
which are 250WattSodium
VapourLamps.At a sR,ecialrate
of Rs 2.90/KW,electrieity cost
that the Pune Munieipal
Corporation
day while theiscarbon
approximatelyRs
payingemitted
is
lllakhper
by these ineffieient lights is
nearly 161tons. Byusing
LED-basedstreet lights,
which consumes 45
Watts,the city cor-
poration pays a
maximum of Rs 2
lakh per day for
the same quality
of lightingand
savesRs60-70 per
point per month
on maintenance
cost as well.
Additionally,the
benefits include reduced
carbon emission of approxi-
mately 130 tons per day.The
value of carbon unit amounts
to more than Rs2 lakhper day
which means that the city cor-
poration of Pune willbe light-
ing up the city at virtuallyno
cost. Howthis helps the resi-
Rs lliakh per day spent on
at the moment can be used for
development work without the
need for levyingadditional
taxes or duties.
pe,a new, __
concept at the moment, but it's
a concept whose time has
cern,e.-It-BQt-lIDly-GffeJ.:S..cQs
benefits, but is a bigfactor in
p:eserving the environment.