Visakhapatnam: EESL officials allay fears over LED lights

Visakhapatnam: Amid the ongoing row over the usage of LED (light-emitting diode) lights across the world after the emergence of a recent report of the American Medical Association (AMA), officials from the Energy Efficient Services Limited (EESL) pacified fears of the users and clarified that LED lights produced in India are completely safe for health.

Recently, the American Medical Association (AMA) reported that the high-intensity LED lighting could decrease visual acuity and safety due to emission of a large amount of blue light. The report also stated that the blue-rich LED streetlights impact the circadian sleep rhythms, could reduce sleep time, impair daytime functioning and result in obesity.

Bringing the controversy to an end, EESL managing director Saurabh Kumar said, “All the LED lights used in India have to undergo a photo-biological test before hitting the markets to ensure the safety of the users. Only those LED lights that meet the safety standards would be allowed for sale. These are completely safe for health as they are fully compliant with the norms. But people should distance from the locally sourced or substandard LED lights, which are always a threat to human health.”

The governments, as well as users, took a fancy for the LED lights for not only they are light on pockets but also because they save energy and have a long life. So far, about 2 crore LED bulbs were distributed in AP.

While the officials initially expected a power savings of 55 units per each LED bulb per annum, the third party assessment carried out by Andhra University and Engineering Staff College of India had estimated the savings of 73 units by replacing the incandescent lights with the LED bulbs per annum. “We are going to replace about two lakh pump sets with energy-efficient pump sets this year. We would also supply five-star rated ceiling fans and the beneficiaries can pay for them in monthly instalments. We are in the process of installing LED lights in all municipalities of Andhra Pradesh,” added Mr Saurabh Kumar.

Bureau of Energy Efficiency secretary and energy economist Sanjay Seth explained about various energy-efficient measures, including Perform Achieve and Trade (PAT) scheme, for large industries in selected sectors.