BHUBANESWAR: Odisha government has decided to scale up bee production by reviving bee nurseries and incentivising keepers.
The decision was taken after thousands of bee colonies were damaged and beekeepers suffered loss during cyclone Fani in 11 coastal districts.
At a recent review meeting, it has been decided to revive 10 bee nurseries under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY).
The Horticulture Department is working on the proposals to make bee nurseries operational in Public-private partnership (PPP) mode. The bee entrepreneurs will be encouraged to manufacture bee boxes and supply those to beneficiaries which will help in income generation.
Director of Horticulture Bijay Kumar Upadhyaya has asked Khadi and Village Industries Board (KVIB), Odisha Forest Development Corporation (OFDC) and Nectar, Odisha to submit available data on beekeeping within seven days for compilation of database.
“Potential districts and clusters will be identified after preparation of the database. The existing progressive beekeepers will be attached to new interested beekeepers for providing technical support. The database will provide an end-to-end solution for beekeeping,” he said.
It has been decided to form a State-level Committee by involving all line departments, private organisations, beekeepers and scientists to monitor the progress of beekeeping activities and finalise the modalities.
The committee will also provide support for incentivising beekeeping in the State.
Nectar has submitted a proposal for outsourcing manpower for the revival of bee nursery and promotion of beekeeping in cluster basis. As per decision, master trainers will be trained at OUAT and provide necessary hand-holding support at the cluster level.
Since Bhubaneswar is a potential place for honey production for its greenery, plans are also afoot to install two boxes in all Government quarters.
It has also been decided to contact Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) for identifying buyers for honey, besides obtaining Agmark certification and food license. Thrust would be on e-marketing.
Odisha is one of 10 medium potential States which have not progressed in bee cultivation though two nurseries under private sector and 12,000 bee colonies have been established under Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture.
