Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a Public Energy Services Company under the administration of Ministry of Power, Government of India (GoI) is successfully running the Hosa Belaku Yojana in Karnataka since December 2015. Under this initiative, more than 2.3 million (23 lakh) LED bulbs have been distributed and the success of the programme can be attributed to the people of the state who have come forward and joined this scheme to make their homes energy efficient.

There are reports in some section of media about the pricing of the LED bulb under the Hosa Belaku Yojana in Karnataka. The news report claims that EESL is selling the LED bulbs at a higher cost for the BPL category. EESL would like to clarify that there is no differential pricing for different sets of consumers under Hosa Belaku, in Karnataka. Each 9W LED bulb is being distributed at Rs. 100 to all the consumers.

Secondly, there is news doing rounds in social media claiming that LED bulbs distributed under the Hosa Belaku Yojana in Karnataka categorically state “Not for Sale” on the bulb. Therefore, EESL does not have the mandate to sell the bulbs to its consumers. EESL would like to clarify that “Not for Sale” is a disclaimer to discourage retail selling of LED bulbs. These bulbs are available through our dedicated distribution counters (list available on www.delp.in) only and cannot be purchased from anywhere else. Strict legal action will be taken against those who are found selling these bulbs in the retail market.

The Hosa Belaku Yojana was started in Karnataka on December 14 last year and has already distributed over 23 lakh LED bulbs in two months. As of date, the savings achieved have led to an estimated cost reduction of Rs 30 lakh per day, and reduction in peak load by 67.5 MW. Environmental impact of the scheme has resulted in reduction of 633 tonnes of CO2 emission, while the energy savings per day is about 7 lakh kWh.

What is noteworthy is that the LED bulbs distributed under this scheme are run through a series of stringent quality tests before the distribution commences. These bulbs conform to BIS specification IS 16102 (Part 1) and (Part 2): 2012 for self-ballasted lamps, which means that Photobiological safety testing of LED products is carried out in advance to ensure protection of skin and eye from potentially harmful optical radiation. As long as the LED sources and lighting systems meet the safety standards, they are completely safe. EESL’s technical specification of LED bulbs is compliant with this Photobiological safety standard for health and environmental safety.

EESL is a joint venture of National Thermal Power Corporation Limited, Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation and POWERGRID and was set up under Ministry of Power to facilitate implementation of energy efficiency projects. EESL is implementing the largest energy efficient LED based lighting programme in the world. The Government plans to distribute 77 crore LED bulbs by March 2019.