KOZHIKODE: The Pilikode grama panchayat in Kasargod has ushered in a revolution in saving electricity by switching over to LED from filament bulbs. It has become the first grama panchayat in the country to fully stop the use of filament lamps which led to the saving of 1,01,694 units of power worth Rs 4, 06, 776 per month between March 2016 and March 2017. As per the KSEB, 12, 20, 328 units of power worth over Rs 48 lakh will be saved annually.
This is the result of mission 'Oorjayanam' implemented by the panchayat in two phases during 2015-16 and 2016-17. As many as 6,116 households, 285 institutions and 166 pump houses were covered under the project and the panchayat is now free from incandescent lamps. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will make the declaration to this effect at Pilikode on April 12. The Energy Management Centre (EMC) in Thiruvananthapuram under department of power collaborated with the grama panchayat in the project. A total of 50 selected people were trained at the EMC initially.
"They trained the resource persons of 118 'Ayalkoottams' of Kudumbashree. A survey was conducted to know the power usage and the project implemented accordingly," said Pilikode grama panchayat president T.V. Sreedharan. LED lamps were supplied by EMC and KSEB at subsidised rates. People were taught to check power meter readings and regulate consumption. A 'power manager' was appointed among students and Ayalkoottams to monitor usage. Panchayat vice-president P. Shylaja said that follow-up action to switch over to solar energy and do away with induction cookers had been started.
