siliconindia | | June 20199and is expected to grow at a rapid rate. Light-emitting di-ode (LED) is a semiconductor which outturns light when an electric current is passed through it. Also, known as solid-state lighting, LED lights have potential perks over halogen, fluorescent, and incandescent lights such as ener-gy efficiency, longer lifespan and low power consumption.One of the gigantic challenges that the lighting indus-try had faced in the past was the lack of congruity between control systems and LED fixtures because drivers need-ed special electronics. Now, with controls directly in the LED, you don't have compatibility issue. This is making it easier for homeowners to induct smart lighting. Right out-of-the-box, the fixtures can be installed as smoothly as replacing a bulb. It makes the process seamless.During the United Nations' groundwork convention on climate change held in Paris in December 2015, India guaranteed to cut-off its carbon emissions intensity by 33-35 percent by 2030. Endorsing this pledge, the government has initiated various drives to promote the usage of LED lighting products in the country. For instance, Indian Rail-ways has taken an eco-friendly measure to make all rail-way stations 100 percent LED lit by the end of financial year 2018. In 2017, the Indian Government also launched `Domestic Efficient Lighting Program', which is aimed at improving the use of energy-efficient lighting products in the residential, as well as commercial/industrial sector. The requirement for streetlights is driven by govern-ment initiatives, while in residential and office spaces, de-mand is mainly driven by increasing consumer awareness about energy-efficient products with more functionalities. The need for LED lighting in India is still largely driven in metro cities, mainly because of better awareness and higher socio-economic growth. However, the demand from Tier-II cities is also expected to increase based on requirements from the street lighting and industrial lighting domains.Currently, demand for LED lighting from rural India is still not significant. The government (through EESL) will be implementing the first rural LED street lighting proj-ect by retrofitting one million conventional streetlights with LED lights in the gram panchayats of seven districts of Andhra Pradesh under the Street Lighting Nation-al Project (SLNP). Further expansion of such initiatives across the country will open-up new markets for the LED lighting industry.The growth of LED industry was recorded about 50 percent in 2015. The LED lighting market in India is pro-jected to register a CAGR of 26.6 percent during 2017-23. Basis for this projection is due to rise in personal income, government initiatives encouraging use of LED lights, and focus on smart city projects. The Indian lighting industry is expected to grow at a higher rate per annum, ranging be-tween 13-15 percent until 2020. However, with a popula-tion of around 1.2 billion people, India is yet to cater elec-tricity to around 0.3 billion people, which can be another catalyst for growth in the coming years, as the government moves towards total electrification of each & every corner of the country by 2022. As the LED technology improves, one of the key inno-vations that the industry is witnessing is the smart wake-up and sleep lamps. Although research into adopting light and color for other intent like calming down, treating anxiety or aiding productivity is still limited, researchers and tech companies are charging forward towards providing this power into the hands of the consumer. The LED sector in India has also come-up with advancement technologies and innovations which include Sensor-based LED light-ing, Internet of Things (IoT) Connected Lighting System, and Light Fidelity (LiFi) Technology. LED industry is also facing complex challenges that need to be taken into consideration. Today, with the LED bulb prices being at the lowest and continuously falling further it has created whole lot of issues for the local man-ufacturers to gain good enough margins for sustainabili-ty. Continuously the local industry is also facing extreme competition from Chinese manufacturers, as they are inun-dating the market with low quality and cheap products. On top of that, GST on LED lights and raw materials used for manufacturing ranges from 18-28 percent which is becom-ing detrimental to the industryAs the demand for LED lighting systems is continu-ously rising across the country due to flourishing urban-ization rates and rising number of government initiatives that encourage the use of LED lights. The Government's backing through various regulations that promote the in-vestments in energy efficient lighting technologies have increased the applications of LED lights across various industrial, commercial and residential sectors. An ex-peditiously growing automotive industry also provides constructive opportunities for the use of LEDs in head lamps, rear lamps, turn signal and brake lights. Increas-ing infrastructural investments, rapid surge of street lighting systems, slump in average prices of LEDs and various government and upcoming smart building proj-ects are expected to drive the demand of LED lights in India further.
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