Earth hour observed in Delhi

The national capital Saturday observed the earth hour as lights across the city were switched off for an hour at 8.30 p.m.

Organised by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the Earth Hour is an annual global environmental campaign observed March 29 from 8.30 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. People are asked to switch off lights for an hour - as part of their commitment to the planet.

"We got a brilliant response this year as well. Corporate houses as well as many monuments in Delhi switched off their lights for an hour," Rituparna Sengupta of WWF-India told IANS.

According to Sengupta, lights at the Akshardham temple, India Gate, Rahtrapati Bhavan and Red Fort were switched off.

"The campaign has been very successful since it was started in 2009.

"From the participation of five million people in 2009, it became 10-12 million last year. Also, we saw participation from 58 cities in 2009, which grew to 150 cities in 2013," she said.

In the capital, various events took place for the day while hotels and corporate houses actively supported the event by switching off non-essential lights.

Courtyard by Marriott in suburban Gurgaon shut off its light for an hour while Ericsson went a step ahead and in addition to switching the light off at all its facilities in India, it educated all its employees on how to conserve environment through an e-mail.

"Ericsson is urging its more than 17000 employees across 25 offices and four regional technical centers in India to take a few steps and make a difference," the company said.

Meanwhile, the WWF also organised a concert "Jam for the Hour" featuring performances by bands like Faridkot at Dilli Haat.