Govt to install over 90k smart streetlights across Delhi: CM

Government officials said that the move is aimed at enhancing women’s safety by eliminating dark spots

New Delhi: Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said that the government will install 90,953 smart streetlights throughout Delhi, covering over 1400 kilometres of the road network under the Public Works Department (PWD) across the city.

PWD officials said that the manual monitoring of the current streetlights made it difficult to address complaints promptly. (HT Archive)

All arterial city roads over 60m wide are owned and maintained by PWD. Government officials said that the move is aimed at enhancing women’s safety by eliminating dark spots and promoting energy conservation.

The chief minister added that these smart streetlights will be managed through a central monitoring system. “In the event of any fault or malfunctioning, the control room will be promptly alerted, triggering immediate replacement measures. This proactive approach guarantees a swift response and maintenance, ensuring that no dark spots persist in the city,” said Kejriwal.

The smart streetlight policy was approved by the chief minister during a high-level meeting at the Delhi Secretariat on Tuesday. During the meeting, the PWD presented the scheme, highlighting the outdated technology used in existing streetlights, which made it challenging to procure spare parts and led to excessive energy consumption. Additionally, the manual monitoring of the current streetlights made it difficult to address complaints promptly.

PWD officials informed that the department currently spends approximately ₹110 crore annually on electricity consumption by streetlights and an additional ₹28 crore on operation and maintenance. Officials added that while the traditional lights cost ₹290 per point per month, the LEDs will cost around ₹190 per point per month.

The government has adopted the Energy Service Company (ESCO) model for the control of smart lights.

“Under the ESCO model, the PWD’s electricity bill is expected to be reduced by approximately 50%,” said a PWD official.

The savings from reduced electricity bills and maintenance costs will be shared with the concessionaire. Out of the total 90,953 smart LED streetlights, 59,572 traditional lights will be replaced with smart LED lights, while 31,381 existing LED lights will be converted into smart streetlights.