India’s primary focus was on increasing electricity production, but the government also needed to change consumer behavior towards Energy Efficiency. Since energy saved is energy produced, the government urged millions of Indians to replace normal incandescent bulbs in their homes with energy-efficient LEDs. To encourage the purchase of LED bulbs, the Ministry of Power introduced the Domestic Efficient Lighting Program (DELP), offering LED bulbs at a reduced cost. However, lack of awareness and the perceived higher cost of LEDs limited the progress.
At the start of our work with EESL, it had taken them 1.5 years to sell the first 10 million bulbs. Hence, there was a need to greatly accelerate adoption. Through the ILEDTHEWAY campaign we helped catalyse the distribution of just under 10 million LED bulbs in less than a month with six bulbs being distributed every single second. With more than $19 million in energy costs daily, we’ve helped Indian households adopt energy efficient practices 2,784% faster. As a part of the campaign, conversations about benefits of LED bulbs and EESL’s initiatives were generated across national and vernacular media, with coverage in over 50 publications.