Meet held to promote beekeeping among women and senior citizens

A beekeepers’ meet was held in Mysuru on Monday as part of efforts to promote beekeeping among women and senior citizens.

A beekeepers’ meet was held in Mysuru on Monday as part of efforts to promote beekeeping among women and senior citizens.

Organised jointly by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) in association with Nectar Fresh, a Rural Employment Generation Programme (REGP) unit and Laghu Udyog Bharati’s Mysuru division, the beekeepers’ meet sought to promote beekeeping activity with a view to economically empower people living in interior rural areas by introducing and popularising modern beekeeping.

Founder and MD of Nectar Fresh Chayaa Nanjappa told The Hindu that the first meet was aimed at creating awareness of beekeeping among the targeted groups. Subsequently, the organisers plan to involve officials from the Agriculture and Horticulture Department and explore the possibility of distributing beekeeping boxes followed by dissemination of technology and other information to the beekeepers.

A statement from the organisers said that KVIC, under the Honey Mission programme, will identify beneficiaries including farmers and unemployed youth and provide them bee boxes with live colonies with the aim of not only providing them livelihood opportunities, but also increasing honey production in the country.

“Efforts are to bring together the beekeepers, farmers, researchers, government agencies, agribusinesses, conservation groups, manufacturers and regulatory bodies to improve the beekeeping practices in the country, impart skills on beekeeping, supply necessary tools, disseminate technology and information, create awareness on good beekeeping practices, enhance the health of honeybee and use as a potential pollinator for higher crop yield,” said a statement from the organisers.

Ms. Nanjappa said the participants were encouraged to begin beekeeping as a hobby and use the honey they produce for their own domestic consumption for a few months before marketing the honey.

Out of the 100 participants at the meet, about 40 were women farmers, who grew vegetables in the rural parts of Mysuru district, she said.