The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (MoA&FW), Government of India is celebrating World Bee Day at Raja Bhoj Agriculture College, Warasivni, Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh. Bees help to pollinate plants that create the food that we eat.

But bee numbers have been dropping over the years

As many as 1000 farmers/beekeepers/processors/entrepreneurs and all stakeholders associated with honey production are expected to attend the World Bee Day celebration.

During the World Bee Day celebration, an Exhibition with over 100 stalls will be set up by Beekeepers, processors and different stake holders of beekeeping sector to showcase the diverse varieties of honey bee and different products in beekeeping sector.

Keeping the importance of beekeeping in mind, a lot of efforts have been /are being made by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, which also includes a centrally funded scheme "National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM)" which has been launched under the Atmanirbhar Bharat scheme. 

It has been started for the overall promotion and development of scientific beekeeping and to achieve the goal of "Sweet Revolution". The NBHM is implemented through the National Bee Board for overall promotion of scientific beekeeping & entrepreneurship among small & marginal farmers, infrastructure development for postharvest management and support for research & development.

Diversified agro-climatic conditions of India provide great potential for beekeeping/honey production. The scientific technology being adopted for increasing production and testing of honey by maintaining quality standards for national and international markets and promoting the production of other beehive products viz.; bee pollen, bees wax, royal jelly, propolis & bee venom. This has facilitated the beekeepers to increase their income and address to the greater demand of honey and beehive products both in the domestic and international markets.

Bees are renowned for their role in providing high-quality food and other products used in healthcare and other sectors but the work of bees entails much more. Effective pollination increases the yield of agricultural produce and improves their quality. Beekeeping in India is thus an important agri-business activity that not only promises good returns to the farmers but also helps increase agricultural productivity leading to food and nutritional security of the country.

Key Takeaways

• World Bee Day is celebrated on 20 May.
• On this day a Slovenian beekeeper, Anton Janša was born in 1734. He is considered as pioneer of beekeeping.
• The purpose of the international day is to acknowledge the role of bees and other pollinators for the ecosystem.
• The UN Member States approved Slovenia’s proposal to proclaim 20 May as World Bee Day in December 2017
• Slovenia is a nation of beekeepers, and beekeeping enjoys a status equal to that of other types of agricultural activity.