Kathmandu, Apr. 5: Despite the immense potentials for hydro electricity in the country only 15 percent of the total population and five percent rural population have access to electricity.
Given this backdrop low-cost and viable system of rural electrification was long overdue and efforts in this direction have been initiated. In this connection, the Energy Study Centre of the Institute of Engineering has developed what is called the “White Light Emitting Diode (WLED) system of electricity generation in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme Rural Energy Development Programme.
Developed as an alternative to the use of kerosene lamps and other indigenous methods of lighting in the rural areas which is not only harmful to the health and environment but also expensive for the people, the WLED system is said to be 662 times more efficient and effective than these traditional rural lighting methods.
It is learnt the bulb used in the WLED system has an age limit of 100,000 hours which can last for 54 years when lighted at the rate of five hours daily. Likewise, the dry cell and the battery used in the system lasts for at least one and a half month even if used continuously for five hours.
The white light emitting diode system consists of a set of three lead filament bulbs, two table lamps, eight ceiling lamps, a solar module, a battery charger and electric cables. This new domestic solar power lighting system costs about Rs 4,550 for installation and His Majesty’s Government has been providing subsidies in rural electrification.
As per the present arrangement, the government has been providing a grant of Rs 15,000 of the total installation cost of the solar power system. It is felt that this new system of rural electrification would benefit a sizable section of the rural poor if the government provided upto 75 percent grant in installing the system.
According to data available, of the total national population of about 22.5 million, 19.1 million people or 3.4 million households in the country are currently deprived of electricity. The average Nepalese household size is 5.6 persons.
Out of these households deprived of electricity facilities, some 200,000 households are found to use temporary sources of lighting while the remaining 3.2 million households do not even have the remote chance of getting electricity in the near future.
Therefore, it is felt that this new system of rural electrification should be expanded to make electricity accessible to this large section of the rural population.
On an average three small size kerosene lamps used in a medium size household consume about 255 litres of kerosene in five years and the cost of kerosene in the hilly areas is Rs 20 per litre. Thus, using kerosene becomes very expensive. Moreover, it is harmful to people’s health and the environment. A total of 292,000 kilolitres kerosene was imported by Nepal in the last fiscal year which after combustion deposited 715 tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Ninety-one percent of the imported kerosene is used for domestic purposes and His Majesty’s Government has been providing a subsidy of Rs 3.50 per litre which comes to be about Rs 1,022,045,000 of the total kerosene imported in 1998/1999.
In this context also it is important to further develop and encourage the use of the new system of rural electrification in order to reduce the large amount of money spent in subsidizing kerosene.