According to a study conducted by market research firm Nielsen across 400 retail outlets spanning eight cities, has found that 47% of LED bulb brands and 52% of LED down-lighter brands do not meet the prescribed safety standards and pose a safety hazard for consumers and environment.
They flout the consumer safety standards prescribed by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and the ministry of electronics and information technology.
In the LED bulbs category, Hyderabad had the highest non-compliance levels in BIS mark at 57 percent and Ahmedabad at 60 per cent had the highest non-compliance levels in legal metrology.
In the LED Down-lighter category, Bareilly had the highest non-compliance in BIS mark at 78 percent and Mumbai topped the charts in non-compliance in legal metrology at 78 percent.
These non-compliant manufacturers do not follow mandated safety procedures and hence the products manufactured by them are not only unsafe but also less energy efficient.
This will negatively impact the government’s focus on promoting energy efficient products. The government also loses tax revenue because these are manufactured illegally.
The total LED Market in India is worth Rs 11,400 crore, with LED bulbs and down-lighters constituting 72 percent of the overall LED market, being widely used across homes, offices and work spaces.
Reference- Firstpost, Nielsen Report, New Indian Express, Consumer Voice