‘Gram Ujala’ Scheme Launched In Bihar

• 20 Mar 2021

• Rural population was still unable to afford discounted LEDs so, Gram Ujala – a customized program for rural India, based uniquely and innovatively on carbon finance, has been launched.
• The Union Power Ministry has launched the pilot ‘Gram Ujala’ programme in Arrah, Bihar. The Gram Ujala programme will be implemented in villages of the 5 districts only.
• Under this scheme, LEDs (7 watt and 12-Watt LED bulbs with 3 years warranty) will be available for only Rs 10 each for each household, in exchange for working condition old incandescent lamps. Each household will get up to 5 LEDs.
• In the first phase of this programme, 15 million (1.5 crore) LED bulbs will be distributed across villages of Aarah (Bihar), Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), Vijaywada (Andhra Pradesh), Nagpur (Maharashtra), and village in western Gujarat.
• The programme will provide clean energy access and make a significant contribution towards mitigating climate change and achieving a sustainable future.
• ‘Gram Ujala’ programme will be financed entirely through carbon credits and will be the first such programme in India.
• The ‘Gram Ujala’ programme will have a significant impact on India’s climate change action energy savings of 2025 million KWh/year and CO2 reductions of 1. 65 million T CO2/year.