Bhubaneswar, July 14: All central government offices here are about to start using energy-saving light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs from next month following a directive from the Union urban development ministry.

"We have received an order and started its implementation in our office. Traditional mercury bulbs and tube lights will be replaced with the energy-efficient LEDs. It will bring down the electricity consumption to up to 80 per cent," said director of the regional meteorological centre Sarat Sahu.

Facilities such as the Biju Patnaik International Airport, which is under the jurisdiction of the Airports Authority of India, have already replaced traditional lights with LEDs. All other central government offices will have the new lighting system in place by this month.

The city has many central government offices, such as the Central Water Commission and the National Council for Teacher Education.

"It is a good decision of the government to make it mandatory for the offices to use LED bulbs. It will bring down electricity consumption significantly. The move will also help keep a balance in the eco-system by saving more energy for future consumption," said Krushna Chandra Rath, a retired government employee.

Patia resident Kamalakanta Sahoo said the government had been constantly encouraging the use of LED bulbs among people at the ground level.

Environment activists also welcomed the move of the central government and urged the state government to adopt a similar practice. "Traditional mercury and compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs should be completely banned since they harm the environment. There should be a collaborative effort to encourage the use of LED bulbs at all levels," said environmentalist Alok Mohanty.

Mock drill

The National Security Guard, in a joint operation with Odisha police, carried out mock drills at prominent places in the capital on Thursday night. Black Cat commandos of the NSG and Special Operations Group, Special Tactical Unit and Special Security Battalion of the state police spread out at prominent places, starting from Rajiv Bhavan, Secretariat and the Assembly to Biju Patnaik International Airport for the drill.