Perspectives and Challenges of Apiculture for Sustainable Agriculture under Changing Climatic Conditions

Abstract

Looming dangers of food insecurity in the present millennium brought about by exploding population, coupled with a decrease in per capita availability of arable land has necessitated the attention of policy makers and planners in India to evolve an agenda ensuring sustainable livelihoods, natural resource use optimization and ecosystem protection through off-farm food and income generating activities and programs. In this scenario, beekeeping is destined to play a crucial role. In the present context of commercialization of agriculture and liberalization of Indian economy, beekeeping covers the entire scope of honeybee resources, bee products, beekeeping practices, pollination services and their interface with economic/business systems and environmental integrity. The potential for beekeeping in India is yet to be realized and according to a rough estimate this figure is merely 10 per cent. It is also well documented that the bulk of the honey and beeswax produced and consumed within the country comes from indigenous honeybee species namely Apis dorsata F., A. laboriosa S. and A. florea. F. A significant number of traditional communities depend upon these wild bee species for their livelihood seasonally. Also, these indigenous honeybee species play a very important role in preserving the biodiversity of local flora and fauna. There is a significant untapped diversity of scientific and practical knowledge available within the country. Several aspects have been studied in much details, but this knowledge has not been widely disseminated. In general, a little is known about the overall status of research, training and extension systems, primarily because of a lack of coordination amongst various implementing agencies and lack of databases. Pollination and its practical application are still knowledge for insiders and a broad level outreach of this aspect is lacking. There is thus an obvious need for reorienting policies and programs in the country for revitalizing the beekeeping industry thereby resulting in a paradigm shift towards more productive and sustainable apiculture. So, in the present paper, major constraints and strategies for rapid development of beekeeping in India under changing climatic conditions have been suggested.