Indian lighting industry has witnessed a steady growth of over 10 per cent during the past few years primarily driven by strong volume growth thanks to shift from conventional CFL and incandescent lamps to LED bulbs. Today, the lighting market in India is estimated at about Rs 18,000 crore. According to industry estimates, it is expected to be doubled in the next five years.
Further, demand patterns is also undergoing a sea change in lighting industry. As ‘smart’ products are becoming an inherent part of the digital transformation of our daily lives, we are witnessing a clear shift towards ‘connected lighting’.
Connected lighting, the new buzzword used to describe an intelligent lighting equipment, enables building devices communicate through lighting using controls and sensors harnessing the power of data. It does more than just light spaces. As India is inching towards making its cities ‘smart’, connected lighting will play will play a transformative role in this digital age.
Under the program, UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All), the Indian government targeted to distribute 770 million LED bulbs by March 2019 across 100 cities. However, only 44 per cent or 317 million units of LED bulbs have been distributed so far. The pending distribution volume is expected to boost demand further.
The lack of standardisation remains the LED lighting industry’s most vital point of concern. Though LED bulbs are required to have star rating to ensure quality commencing May 2018, the market is still flooded with poorquality, inefficient LEDs imported through ‘grey channel’. This is also contributing to the increased competition and decline in product prices thereby hitting organised players’ profitability. The recently announced increased import duty may somehow restrict such import threats.
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