The company will supply the lights to NGOs, which are into environment protection, and other nodal agencies identified by the Ministry. About one lakh villages will be covered under the programme. Besides, virgin markets - about 20,000 villages which have not been electrified - will be provided LED lights.

M.V. Ramana Rao, managing director of MIC Electronics, says LED white lights have longer life - over 50,000 hours - and zero maintenance, as compared to CFLs whose lifespan is just about 5,000 hours. It works on the technology of solid state lighting (SSL) and there are no filament burnouts. Each LED light saves power by almost 40 per cent than the usual bulbs or CFLs. But LED lights cost a fortune.

Vice-president of MIC Narayana Paladugu says typically if a CFL costs Rs. 100 to Rs. 150, an LED white light of the same luminance costs Rs. 700. The company supplies LED lights that work on solar power to rural areas through the nodal agencies. While an entire unit of a solar street lights, including the solar panel, pole, battery, charge controller and installation, comes for Rs. 22,000, while the home lighting system with one LED light comes for Rs. 3,000.

The company imports the LED chip from Nichia Corporation, Japan, to manufacture the lights.

The LED lights require no wiring and they are vibration and impact resistant. Power cuts cannot put the lights off.

MIC is also making railway lighting products like emergency lamps, coach lighting, berth-wise reading lamps, door and pathway lighting, embarkation lamp, reservation chart light, chain-pull indicator, night lamp and berth number indication lamp are all being provided on an experimental basis in one coach.