Odisha govt launches free LED bulb scheme for poor

Bhubaneswar: With the general polls round the corner, Odisha government today launched the ‘Ama Ghare LED Yojana’ to provide free LED bulbs to beneficiaries of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and State Food Security Scheme (SFSS).

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched the scheme at the State Secretariat here through video conferencing. Under the scheme, each beneficiary will get four LED bulbs of nine watts each free of cost.

As per reports, a total of 95 lakh beneficiaries included under the food security act will be benefitted with the ‘Ama Ghare LED Yojana’. The State government is planning to procure 3.80 core LED bulbs for distribution.
Sources said the bulbs will be distributed during People’s Empowerment Enabling Transparency and Accountability (PEETHA) camps from January 15 to 20 at across the State.

“People will get good quality LED bulbs under the scheme. Besides, their electricity bill will come down significantly,” said Hemant Sharma, Energy Secretary.

In the annual budget of 2018-19, the State government had made a provision of Rs 125 crore for the scheme.