Earth’s calling, where are you? The annual Earth Hour tradition that started in Australia in 2007 has now reached 5,200 cities and 135 countries across the globe. The most powerful 60 minutes that unite people sans ‘power’ are set to sweep the city to create awareness about sustainable resources of energy and conserving power.

On March 31 from 8.30 pm to 9.30 pm the environment-conscious communities, groups and people are all set to switch off the extra electricity. Since the Earth Hour is falling on a weekend and most of the people will be enjoying their offs at various eateries, hotels and clubs at the peak hour, we find out how the hospitality sector in the city stands united for this cause.
David Hopcroft, GM, Shangri-la Eros, says, “This year we are commemorating Earth Hour by switching off most of the lights and requesting our guests to do the same. We also have our internal policy decision to repeat the principles of Earth Hour every month and we reduce our energy consumption by switching off.”
Many hotels are also making an extra effort by informing the guests about Earth Hour, and promoting it on their websites. Sanzeev Bhatia, GM, Metropolitan Hotel and Spa, says, “For Earth Hour, we’ll inform our guests through keeping collaterals of the same in the rooms and request them to switch off the lights. We use minimal lights in public area and there will be a TV slide on light conservation running in the lobby.”
Aashita Relan, director of Royal China, reveals that to create awareness about conservation, there will be a bonfire at her restaurant. She says, “We are switching off exterior lighting and rooftop neon signage. We will also dim all interior lights and reception area light. There will be one-hour candlelight dinner. In the open roof-top area we’ll have a small campfire to create awareness about this cause.”
“We will switch off the extra lights at back offices, corridors, pantries etc to shoulder our environmental responsibilities,” informs Sanjay Keswani, director of operations, Hilton Eros, Nehru Place.
Similarly, Vijay Wanchoo, senior VC and GM at The Imperial, mentions, “We have undertaken conservation of electricity by switching off lights in public areas when not in use. We have also reduced the number of lights and consumption of electricity during night hours. In our hotel every week lights are switched off in many areas for one hour.”
Anand Gupta, owner of Ananda’s restaurant, is also excited to be a part of the campaign, and says, “We have planned to do our bit by showcasing a documentary movie on Earth Hour, alongwith that we would be turning off all lights.” Whereas, Debjeet Banerjee, director F&B at The Park, says, “We will be lighting up all the public spaces including our restaurants and nightclubs with scented candles and lamps.”
Nitin Chawla, MD, Zygo, informs that they will be turning off electricity for one hour to create awareness about climate change. “Switching off for just an hour is a simple and easy task but it is huge symbolically as it sends out a powerful message about uniting people and protecting the planet,” he says.
Keshav Suri, executive director, The Lalit Suri Hospitality Group, says, “We will ensure that we save power across all our properties and have created creative options for guests to enjoy responsibly.”
Sammir Gogia, of Harem Garden of Five Senses, says that there will be a candlelight dinner for an hour at special discounted price during the Earth Hour in their restaurant.