India ranks sixth in the world in terms of energy demand, accounting for 3.5% of the total world commercial energy demand in 2003. With a GDP growth of 8% for the Tenth Five Year Plan, energy demand, capita consumption of electricity, index of development for any country, energy conservation.
The
most important form of energy is electricity. It is difficult to visualize life
without electricity—whether it is a big or a small industry, agriculture
or household—electricity is the driving force of our existence. Today, the
per capita consumption of electricity is considered to be the index of development
for any country. Energy conservation assumes special significance owing to the
limited sources of energy in our country and our heavy dependence on imports.
Rapid increase in energy demand, particularly in the industrial and the service
sectors has also generated a renewed awareness on the economic improvements of
energy conservation. Structural economic changes have led to the growth of the
industrial foundation in the country which inturn led to the increase in energy
demand.
Fossil
fuels which are finite will exhaust quickly in the long run due to maximum use
of these resources, as the oil imports by developing nations are increasing every
year. But the formation of conventional resources takes millions of years and
cannot be renewed; this makes them valuable. Therefore, it is essential to create
public awareness about energy conservation and make the best use of available
resources. Power wastage occurs due to lack of public awareness in conserving
energy, non-availability of technological and quality instruments to measure power
loss, power theft, free power supply to the public, and poor architectural designs
that do not take into consideration, natural light and air. |
