New Delhi : Commemorating the Annual National Energy Conservation Day at a function here today, the Union Minister for Power, Hon’ble Shri Sushilkumar Shinde, gave away the National Energy Conservation Awards as recognition of innovation and achievement by various establishments in energy conservation. The awardees were from 32 sectors from industry; Hotels and Hospitals; Office Buildings; Shopping Malls; Zonal Railways; State Designated Agencies; Municipalities; Thermal Power Stations; and Manufacturers of Electrical Appliances carrying star labels certified by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) .

Hon’ble Shri Bharatsinh Solanki, Minister of State for Power, presided over the function. Shri P Uma Shankar, Union Power Secretary; Shri Devinder Singh, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Power; and Dr. Ajay Mathur, Director-General, BEE, which coordinates the Energy Conservation Awards Scheme of the Ministry of Power, were also present on the occasion.

The awards scheme has been in operation since 1991 and the awards are presented every year on December 14, which is celebrated as National Energy Conservation Day. The awards have been a source of motivation for the participating units to undertake serious efforts in saving energy. Since the awardees suggest the potential for large-scale replication, they raise awareness that energy conservation plays a big part in India’s response to reducing global warming through energy savings.

The participating units of the 2010 Awards have collectively invested Rs. 5457 crore in energy conservation measures, and achieved a monetary saving of Rs. 2138 crore every year. These efforts have resulted in an annual saving of 2422 Million kWh of electrical energy, which is equivalent to the energy generated from a 357 MW thermal power station at a plant load factor of 0.775.

In another highlight of the function, the Union Minister of Power gave away prizes to the 23 national winners of the annual Energy Conservation Painting Competition. The competition is held every year at the School, State and National Levels under the National Campaign on Energy Conservation undertaken by the Ministry of Power and Bureau of Energy Efficiency. This year, the competition saw a record participation from 47155 schools and 15.63 lakh students from across the country.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Shinde said, “Energy conservation across all sectors of the economy is essential for balancing growth in energy demand and economic growth, while ensuring that India’s access to energy is managed efficiently. India is one of the first developing countries to have achieved the unique distinction of successfully achieving the decoupling of economic growth from energy use. The National Energy Conservation Awards are a testament to the Government’s and the industry’s commitment towards efficient energy management and conservation.”

Addressing the gathering, Shri Solanki said, “Energy conservation and efficiency have been brought to the centre-stage of the power sector in India. The tremendous potential that energy conservation has for saving power can bridge the gap between demand and supply. The need of the hour is to have a more vigorous and focused national level participation by all stakeholders to meet the desired objective of reducing the energy intensity. These awards are a step in this direction.”

In his address, Shri P Uma Shankar said, “The Energy Conservation awards have motivated the participating units to undertake serious efforts in saving energy and safeguarding the environment. This is evident from the increase in the number of participating units over the previous years—from 123 industrial and commercial units in 1999 to 592 in 2010. What is especially gratifying is that energy conservation has caught the imagination of children, those who will inherit the nation that we are building. Participation in our School Level Painting Competition this year was about 71% higher than that in the previous year. We have made significant progress in creating mass awareness on the use of energy, particularly in the domestic sector.”

In the Painting Competition, the Rs. 1 Lakh First Prize has gone to Adrija Acharya of Sri Krishna Mission School , Agartala, Tripura.