WWF, discoms urge Delhi to observe Earth Hour this Saturday

Ravi Singh, secretary general and CEO, WWF-India said the global campaign, which began in 2007 in Sydney, aims to bring the best conservation practices forward and shows the change collective efforts can bring

Ahead of Earth Hour, which will be observed on Saturday (March 25) at 8.30pm, power discoms and environmental organisations have urged people in the national capital to switch off all electrical appliances and non-essential lights for an hour.

The annual global event, which is organised by the World Wildlife Fund, aims to unite people to take action on environmental issues and protect the planet by reducing carbon emissions and conserving energy. (Representative image/HT Archive)

The annual global event, which is organised by the World Wildlife Fund, aims to unite people to take action on environmental issues and protect the planet by reducing carbon emissions and conserving energy. The movement first began in 2007 in Sydney.

Commenting on the importance of a sustainable planet, a spokesperson of power discom BSES said, “We sincerely appeal to our over 4.8 million consumers and around 2 million residents in our area to make the right choice for the planet and for the future generations that will inherit it.” Last year, Delhi saved 171 MW of electricity during Earth Hour.

This year, Grammy award -winning composer and environmentalist Ricky Kej is the face of the Earth Hour in India.

Ravi Singh, secretary general and CEO, WWF-India said the global campaign, which began in 2007 in Sydney, aims to bring the best conservation practices forward and shows the change collective efforts can bring. “Every year, on Earth Hour, citizens worldwide take action by voluntarily switching off non-essential lights for one hour. The campaign helps bring conservation and sustainable practices into focus towards creating a better world for future generations.”

While 171 MW was saved in the Capital during last year’s Earth Hour, around 334 MW was saved in 2021, 79MW in 2020 and 279 MW in 2019. In Delhi, monuments where lights are switched off include India Gate, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Qutub Minar and Purana Qila among others.

A Tata Power-DDL spokesperson said this year too, the discom will be extending its support to the movement. “Each year, this global movement is observed enthusiastically against climate change through this symbolic initiative of switching the lights off. This year too, we are asking consumers to do the same.”