LED bulbs for Indian poor, courtesy American girl

A teenage American girl of Indian origin is lighting up the lives of the underprivileged Indians by distributing LED bulbs bought the money raised by her for the noble cause.

While working on her science project as a seventh grader, Meera Vashisht, a 13-year-old girl, chanced upon the news of Indian government’s UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All) programme.

Realising the impact of LED bulbs on the lives of poor and the environment Meera took it upon herself to raise funds for contributing in her own way to the big change.

After making up her mind there was no looking back for this determined American teenager who wanted to do something for her native land.

With the support of her parents and after almost a year of reaching out to five hundred people in her neighbourhood, Meera collected $2,079.51 or approximately ₹1,40,000, to purchase LED bulbs from Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) for distributing them to the residents of slum areas of Keshavpuram in Delhi.

EESL is the implementing agency for the UJALA programme.

Sharing her happiness after distributing the bulbs, a cheerful Meera strongly feels that her initiative will inspire young minds across the globe for a better future and a sustainable world.

Meera quipped that LED bulbs use less than half the energy of an inefficient bulb and runs for more than seven years.

“I am very happy to have been able to carry out the distribution of LED bulbs and hope to inspire young minds across the globe for working towards energy efficiency,” she said.