Indian Standard Time, recent debates (Jan 2014)

The idea of standard time first came about because of the advent of the railways in North
America. In 1883, American and Canadian railroads begin using four continental time zones to
end the confusion of dealing with thousands of local times.
IST corresponds to 82.5 East longitude where Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh is located. The region
east of the line has fewer daylight hours than in the west.
Daylight saving time or Summer time: Here, time as adjusted to achieve longer evening
daylight in summer by setting the clocks an hour ahead of the standard time. Western countries
do this, India also had this system but not anymore.
Adding daylight to evenings benefits retailing, sports, and other activities that exploit sunlight
after working hours, but can cause problems for evening entertainment and other occupations
tied to the sun (such as farming) or to darkness (such as firework shows).
Daylight Saving Time (DST) was used briefly during the SinoIndian War of 1962 and the Indo
Pakistani Wars of 1965 and 1971.
Assam case: The state of Assam has decided to follow the 'chaibagaan' time instead of the
Indian Standard Time, according to reports. The chaibagaan time or bagaan time refers to a
daylight saving schedule introduced by the British for better energy savings on tea plantations
more than 150 years ago.
Recently, Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi said IST has affected productivity and has forced
the state to follow a schedule not suitable to the time zone we are in.
How shifting time zone will save energy?
If office starts at 9.00 and the sunrise was at about 4.30 in the morning (summer), about 4.5
hours (for Mumbai its 2.5) of the most productive early morning hours of employees is lost to the
economy before any work starts => Unfair to the NE States.
In winter, if say the offices shut by 5.30, the sun would've set by 5pm, meaning most of the
vehicles in the rush hour commute back home will need to use their headlights. To add to that,
the offices that stay open a little late will need to keep their lights on for much longer than their
counterparts in western Indian or southern Indian cities. For e.g. An office that closes at 7pm in
NE will need lights on for 2 hours after sunset (5pm-7pm). (for Mumbai its much less)
Why opposition to this plan:
- It will intensify the sense of distance that northeastern India already has in relation to the
rest of India.
- Having to cope with the zones and to be forced to reset the watch each time you need to
cross a domestic line could be complicated.
- Transport and trade schedules could take a hit, for instance. Railway services could face

the risk of accidents and national banks may suffer.

Three different options available to adjust standard time:

-

Dividing the country into two time zones

Instituting Daylight Saving Time (DST)

Advancing IST by half an hour, that is, changing IST to being six hours ahead of GMT
instead of the present five and a half hours.

The National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bangalore, reportedly believe that all states
in India, not just the north-east, will save power if the IST is set at six hours ahead of GMT
instead of 5.30 hours ahead of GMT.
By adjusting IST, we will use sunlight for longer than at present. The extra daylight for half an
hour in the evening for the whole country (which results in the energy saving) is likely to reduce
traffic accidents, which peak during dusk. Also, women can return to work safely in great cities
like Delhi.
Yours truly,
Manas Sahu.
Email id- manas.sahoo91@gmail.com
(Please keep my email id, if you decide to share this document. So that, I can be contacted by the
readers for corrections/suggestions.)

Reference:
- http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/railroads-create-the-first-time-zones
- http://www.firstpost.com/india/no-indian-standard-time-assam-will-turn-its-clocks-ahead-by-anhour-1318993.html?utm_source=ref_article
- http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/time-for-a-change/article5535448.ece
- http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-01-08/indian-standard-time-breaks-down.html
- Changing time | The Indian Express- 13 Jan 2014