Andhra Pradesh has emerged as the top state in terms of LED streetlight installations under the Street Lighting National Programme (SLNP), it was informed in Parliament recently.
According to a reply given by Shripad Naik, Union minister of state for power, a total of 1.31 crore LED streetlights were installed under SLNP as of November 7, 2024 with Andhra Pradesh accounting for 29.48 lakh or 22.4 per cent.
Telangana, formerly part of undivided Andhra Pradesh, came second with 17.28 lakh streetlight installations making up for 13.2 per cent of India’s total.
Ranking next in order were Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, followed by Gujarat, Bihar, Jharkhand, Kerala and Delhi.
The top 10 states accounted for as much as 83.9 per cent of the country’s aggregate LED streetlight installations.
The Parliament reply noted that the 1.31 crore LED streetlights, installed across urban and rural areas under SLNP, have resulted in annual electricity saving of around 8.8 billion kwh (BU) and annual financial saving of around Rs.6178 crore for government bodies concerned like municipalities and gram panchayats.
Launched in 2015, the Street Lighting National Programme (SLNP) aims to reduce energy consumption and costs in public lighting through widespread adoption of LED lamps for street lighting across India.
Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL), a joint venture of Central PSUs under the Ministry of Power is the implementing agency for SLNP. Under this programme, EESL adopted the business model that relieves municipalities from upfront investment burdens. EESL makes the upfront investment and recoups it through monthly/quarterly annuities paid by the municipalities during the project duration. Under SLNP, EESL also handles the maintenance of LED streetlights, ensuring over 95 per cent uptime, which enhances public safety and reliable municipal services without burdening municipal budgets.
No allocation is made towards SLNP in the Union budget as the programme is implemented by EESL in self-financing mode, the Parliament reply said.
Also read: Andhra Pradesh tops street light installations under SLNP
Featured photograph (source: EESL) is a file picture of LED streetlights installed at Udaipur in Rajasthan under EESL’s Street Lighting National Programme (SLNP).