Chandigarh's street lights to go smart, monitored centrally for faster repairs

Hindustan Times

3 days ago

In a move aimed at improving public safety and energy efficiency, the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation is set to overhaul the city's street lighting system by linking over 55,000 lights to the city's Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) in Sector 17. The new agency will install ultra energy-efficient lights with individual control and dimming features, and provide ward-wise illumination reports to councillors. (HT File)
The centralised system will enable real-time monitoring of streetlights, ensuring faster repairs, timely maintenance and better illumination across neighbourhoods.
The revamp comes amid growing complaints over non-functional streetlights and rising crime in poorly lit areas.
Notably, the civic body has been maintaining the street lights on its own since its 2017 contract with Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a public sector undertaking (PSU), ended in 2024.
The non-functional street lights were flagged during the MC House meeting on Tuesday by Congress councillor Gurpreet Singh Gabi.
'For the past six months, more than 30% of the city's streetlights have been lying non-operational. After the earlier contractor withdrew, MC took over the maintenance, but there has been no visible improvement,' he said.
In response, MC chief engineer Sanjay Arora informed the House that the civic body was in the process of bringing in a new agency under the public-private partnership (PPP) mode, with a Request for Proposal (RFP) expected to be tabled at the next House meeting.
The new agency will install ultra energy-efficient lights with individual control and dimming features, and provide ward-wise illumination reports to councillors.
These smart lights will offer higher luminance despite lower wattage, promising brighter streets with reduced energy consumption.
'Earlier, lights delivered 103 lumens per watt. The new lights will offer higher brightness even at 100 lumens per watt. Each light will be individually controlled and councillors will get reports,' Arora said.
Of the total street lights in the city, about 55,000 fall under MC's purview, including 40,000 lights on internal and dividing roads and another 15,000 in parks, green belts, open areas and parking lots. In contrast, the Chandigarh administration's engineering department manages around 5,000 street lights.
Through MC's previous ₹48-crore contract with EESL, over 48,000 conventional bulbs were replaced with LED lights, saving the civic body about ₹6 crore annually in electricity bills. However, the contract was scrapped in 2024 due to poor maintenance and EESL's failure to implement a central monitoring system.
According to Arora, the new system could take around five to six months to be fully operational. In the interim, the civic body is working to repair the existing lights.