LED Expo 2016, rated as India’s largest and the only exhibition for LED lighting, products and technologies, held in Mumbai during May 12-14, had over 160 exhibitors from India, China, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the US. The exhibition covered all aspects of LED lighting and applications that serve the cause of promoting LED and energy-efficient, environment-friendly and cost-saving technologies.
The exhibition was inaugurated by Mr. Chandrashekar Bawankule, Maharashtra Minister for Energy, New & Renewable Energy, in the presence of Mr. Nitin Gadre, Director General, Maharashtra Energy Development Agency (MEDA), and Dr. Jagdish Patil, General Manager Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST).
In his inaugural address, Mr. Bawankule said: “The Government of Maharashtra aims to reduce energy consumption by 35 to 50 per cent. To achieve this aim the State will charge Rs. 85 for each LED bulb, which is priced at Rs. 450 in the market. Equally appreciative is Messe Frankfurt India’s effort in bringing the brightest LED innovators and entrepreneurs from across the globe on one common platform. By bringing together all the stakeholders, the platform would allow sector players to be more vocal about the challenges in their industry and bring relevant products, advancements and expertise together to accelerate adoption of this path-breaking technology.”
Mr. Raj Manek, Executive Director and Board Member of Messe Frankfurt Asia Holding Ltd., said: “This is the 14th edition, and it’s getting bigger and better with the continued support of the industry and Indian ministries. I am happy to announce that the exhibition has grown once again, both in terms of size and number of exhibitors, reinforcing its position as the country’s foremost platform leading the LED transition.”
Energy conservation
Elaborating on plans and VAT reduction on LED products in Maharashtra, Mr. Bawankule said: “The Government has also reduced VAT on LED bulbs & tubelights from 12.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent. LED Expo should expand and be held in various cities like Nagpur, Pune, Aurangabad and other Tier-2 cities. The State needs 40 lakh energy conservation pumps for farmers. We are open to joining hands to make the change. The idea is to have subsidised energy to save energy.”
The State Government has also taken the initiative for replacement of the existing street lights with LED street lights. Work has already started to replace inefficient street lighting with LED through EESL. “We are focusing on home lighting, street lighting and tie-ups with the Municipal Corporation and investors/companies for lighting specific areas or localities,” he added.
Mr. Niting Gadre observed: “LED demand in India has grown considerably. In 12-13 it was just one per cent of total world demand, and today it is almost 10 per cent. Credit has to be given to the Government of India for aggressively pushing LEDs in India. Similarly MEDA has taken many initiatives for promotion of LED in the State. It has launched special schemes for gram panchayats, municipal councils / corporations and Government buildings for installation of LED bulbs, tubelights and street lights.”
Dr. Jagdish Patil said: “Growth in urbanization and indutrialisation has presented a two-fold challenge to energy managers globally – the degrading environment and shortfall in power supply. As some of our remote areas are without electricity, solar and LED lighting have become complementary to each other to light poor homes without smoke.”
Notably, earlier this year the BEST Undertaking had initiated distribution of LED bulbs under the Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP) at a highly subsidised price to make through its selling points set up at bill collection centres.
Apart from MEDA and BEST, the show was strongly supported by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, Department of Industrial Policy And Promotion, Electric Lamp and Component Manufacturers’ Association of India, Indian Building Congress (IBC) and the Solar Energy Society of India (SESI).
Key launches
The event saw a series of new product launches. A few path-breaking technologies unveiled were:
* Soft strip lights by Stanjo India Ltd. known for their flexibility.
* LED emergency bulbs to be used during a power cut and Intelligent Smart Bulb controlled by an iOS/Android App by FIEM Industries
* Energy-saving LED rechargeable flood lights by Pyrotech Electronics Pvt. Ltd. saving up to 60 per cent power.
* A new generation ENWALK ‘Always On’ (24 x 7) light and ‘Solar Lanterns’ by the Pune-based Arham Electronics & Electricals featuring solar charging, long-lasting lithium batteries and mobile charging mechanism.
* The Award-winning and patented LED driver technology by Mingyeung LED which can hold more than 2000 watts, improve durability of the product to more than 10 years and bring down the cost by more than 50 per cent.