Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday launched India's first saline water lantern, which uses seawater to power LED lamps.
According to the Ministry of Earth Science, Mr Singh unveiled the first-of-its-kind lantern named "Roshni" during a visit to Sagar Anveshika, a coastal research vessel operated and used by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai for coastal research.
The minister said saline water lantern will bring "Ease of Living" to the poor and needy, particularly the fishing community living along the 7,500-km-long coastal line of India.
Mr Singh said that Saline Water Lantern will also boost and supplement Prime Minister Narendra Modi's UJALA scheme launched in 2015 for the distribution of LED bulbs across the country.
He said Roshini Lamps along with Power Ministry's schemes like Solar Study Lamps will be driving a vibrant renewable energy programme aimed at achieving energy security, energy access and reducing the carbon footprints of the national economy.
Mr Singh also pointed out that this technology can also be used in hinterlands, where seawater is not available, as any saline water or normal water mixed with the common salt can be used to power the lantern, which is not only cost-effective but very easy to operate.
The minister lauded the NIOT team for inventing the Roshini Lamp and advised them to transfer the technology to the industry for mass production of this multipurpose lamp which can be of immense help in rural and remote areas and in times of disasters.
Later, Mr Singh along with the Secretary, MoES M Ravichandran visited the laboratories and hoisted the national flag on board the ship.
He also met the senior scientists of NIOT onboard the vessel and reviewed the progress of the implementation of the Deep Ocean Mission of India.
Dr Jitendra Singh also reviewed the progress of NIOT-developed Low-Temperature Thermal Desalination (LTTD) technology for conversion of seawater to drinking water, which has been successfully demonstrated in Lakshadweep islands.
He informed that three desalination plants based on the LTTD technology have been developed and demonstrated at Kavaratti, Agati and Minicoy Islands of the Union Territory of Lakshadweep. The capacity of each of these LTTD plants is 1 Lakh litre of drinking water per day.
Secretary, MoES M Ravichandran apprised Mr Singh that based on the success of these plants, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) through Union Territory (UT) Lakshadweep has entrusted the work of establishing 6 more LTTD plants at Amini, Androth, Chetlet, Kadmat, Kalpeni and Kiltan with a capacity of 1.5 lakhs litres/day.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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