The procurement price of LED bulbs has fallen further to Rs 64.41 from Rs 73 per unit under a government programme which could make the energy-efficient lighting more affordable.
The development follows government achieving the milestone of distributing over five crore energy-efficient LED bulbs under the domestic lighting programme.
"Government of India, through its flagship initiative Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP), has achieved a further 10 per cent reduction in prices of 9W LED bulbs in another round of LED procurement for Madhya Pradesh," the Power Ministry said in a statement.
"The procurement price has come down to Rs 64.41 (exclusive of taxes) from existing Rs 73, while the efficiency of 9W bulbs has increased by 20 per cent," it said.
The Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a public energy services company under the Ministry of Power, has through a combination of aggregation and transparent procurement achieved a rapid decline in LED prices making it affordable to the common man, it said.
"In the recent round of procurement of 9W LED bulbs for the state of Madhya Pradesh the price has come down to Rs 64.41 which is exclusive of taxes. This is a 10 per cent reduction from the June, 2015 price of Rs 73 and about 80 per cent reduction from February, 2014 price of Rs 310," it said.
Government has ensured transparency and encouraged competition by using e-procurement of goods and services, it said.
"This has resulted in significant reduction in transaction cost and time and enhanced process efficiency. This, in turn, has led to a much larger participation of bidders thereby increasing competition and reducing the cost of LED bulbs," it added.
The Government has also emphasised on the need to deliver quality and has ensured that the quality of LED bulbs is not compromised.
Power Minister Piyush Goyal had said in November the price of LED bulbs will be brought down to Rs 44 per unit in coming days.
The government had said last week that Energy Efficiency Services has distributed over five crore energy-efficient LED bulbs so far and this count will nearly double to 10 crore in the the next two months.
