Making Energy Count: Campaigning for Energy Conservation in Gujarat (2006-07)

Energy Conservation Week is celebrated all over India from December 14-20 each year. GEDA organized several programs for a fortnight starting from December 14 to December 31 this year to take forward the message of Energy Conservation to a wide variety of audiences.

E and Print Media

The media – newspapers, radio, television – have a very vast reach. GEDA harnessed their ‘energies’, so to say, to broadcast why it is important for all of us to save energy in whichever way we can!.
 

• A special message on Energy Conservation was aired on Prashar Bharati by Sh. Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat, to mark the celebration of the week long event in the state.
   

• FM AIR stations in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Bhuj, Surat and Baroda played the Conservation mantra as slogans, “sanedo” etc. in Gujarati during the fortnight and will continue throughout the year.
   

• Special EC message aired on Radio Mirch in Ahmedbad during the peak slots durations.
   

• Throughout the week advertisements appeared in nine Gujarati and three English newspapers to remind readers all over Gujarat about energy conservation.
   

• An article titled - ‘Energy Efficient efforts in Gujarat’, authored by Director GEDA was published in the Sandesh daily (Vadodara Edition)

Awareness Generation Programmes in Schools
 

• 25 Urja Din celebrations: Gujarat celebrated the Energy Conservation day by initiating the Urja Din celebrations on this day as part of the Bal Urja Raskhak Dal Programme (BURD) at district level.
   

• 25 Urja Utsavs: The Urja Din celebrations were followed by district level Urja Utsav in many parts of the state. The districts Urja Utsavs are edutainment programme organized by Community Science Centres and Competitions for the BURD programme are being organized during the Utsavs.
   

• At a much more physical level GEDA’s energy conservation efforts reached to 1500 schools, 30,000 children and 3000 school teachers directly through participatory awareness generation on energy conservation programs mainly organized trough 3 competitions (Elocution, Poster Design and Essay Competitions), Bhavai, EC messages and rallies that depicted the importance on Energy conservation were held at different locations all over the State in association with 19 Community Science Centres. Urja Trek a special edutainment programmes designed for the students in tribal belt was also organized during the fortnight. Other programmes viz. Energy Lectures, Quiz visit to NRSE (New and renewable Sources for Energy) sites were also organized for children.
   

The summary of the events are detailed in the annexed Table.

These programs addressed approximately 300 participants directly and public at large and generated awareness about domestic energy conservation, and children, to become ‘energy-responsible’ citizens and develop good conservation-oriented habits as they grow.

At all the above events, GEDA publications and pamphlets about our various activities were freely distributed to the participants.