THIRTY minutes load-shedding every day, undeclared power-cuts any time and the looming threat of an increase in the electricity tariff. For Keralites, electricity comes at a heavy price. No wonder many people are looking for alternative power sources that can keep homes welllit without burning the pocket. For the majority, solar energy is the first option. When the focus is on renewable energy the advantages are many. It is independent, conventional, non-polluting and has a free source. After the initial investment for installing the products in the house, there is no need to worry about monthly payments or surprise charges. That is why while the governmentrun campaigns wanted people to switch off lights and save electricity, Georgekutty Kariyanappally, managing director of Lifeway Solar, asked everyone to say goodbye to CFL lamps and switch on all LED lights. Because it is high time we adopted a new and energy conserving technique to replace the one we are using today. Lighting solutions based on Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) are the latest to enter the scene of solar energy as they consume less energy and release less heat. LEDs are replacing traditional lighting technologies in many applications now and the number of people who use this system is on the rise. From banks to houseboats, from offices to houses solar energy can be used by anyone for any purpose. "We have no right to misuse natural resources. Solar energy is the source of power for future generations,' says Georgekutty. He strongly believes that the sun is the ultimate source of all energy. "One may think it is stupid to depend blindly on solar energy but this practice was discovered centuries before by our forefathers, and is still considered practical. The new generation is fascinated by technology from the West but today countries in the West have also started realising the benefits of solar energy,' says George. In order to avoid the difficulties during load shedding, most houses in Kerala are now lit by inverters. These inverters convert alternate current (AC) into direct current (DC) and stores it in the battery. During this process 45 percent of energy is lost from the battery as charge. So through power-cuts the government does not actually save much energy, says George.The best option for households is to buy inverters with charge control units.The use of photovoltaic cells on rooftops can also help to produce, consume and conserve energy. Another important fact is that the zero Watt bulbs used often are not of zero Watt power but of 10-15 Watts. "Kerala state uses 8 lakh zero Watt bulbs every year. If these are replaced by 2W LED bulbs, we can save around 9 MW power. "It costs the government around Rs 6 crore to produce one MW power, that too by using coal, water etc. Thus LED bulbs can save energy and money. Unfortunately the Government of Kerala is charging 12.5 percent tax for LED bulbs which consume less power and only 4 percent for tubelights,' he says. It is a shame that the common man is still using a 132-year-old technology based on the principles put forth by Thomas Alva Edison, says Georgekutty. With Lifeway Solar, he hopes to bring about a revolution of LED lights and solar energy. His shop has everything from the huge solar heater to small LED torches. He has also launched a solar generator which works purely on harnessed sunshine. If this trend catches on, Kerala can surely dream of days without load shedding and power cuts.