About Bees

There are almost 20,000 different species of bees in the world. Bees live in colonies and in each colony, there are three types of bees, the queen bee, the worker bee, and the drone. The worker and the queen bee both are females, but only the queen bee can reproduce. All drones are male.

World Bee Day is celebrated annually on 20th of May. The day marks the birth anniversary of Anton Jansa, a pioneer of modern apiculture. Anton Jansa hailed from a family of beekeepers in Slovenia, where beekeeping is an important agricultural activity with a long-standing tradition. His book ‘Discussion on Bee-keeping’ was also published in German.

Theme for 2022:Bee Engaged: Celebrating the diversity of bees and beekeeping systems.

Significance of Beekeeping?

Pollinators: Bees are some of the most important pollinators, ensuring food security, sustainable agriculture, and biodiversity.

Contribute to the Mitigation of Climate Change: the protection of bees and the beekeeping sector can help reduce poverty and hunger and preserve a healthy environment and biodiversity.

Sustainable Agriculture and Creating Rural Jobs: By pollinating, they increase agricultural production, thus maintaining diversity and variety in the fields and provide millions of people with jobs.

Status of the Apiculture in India

India is the sixth major natural honey exporting country.

The major export destinations are the USA, Saudi Arab, Canada, and Qatar.

The Indian apiculture market size is expected to reach a value of Rs 33,128 million by 2024, expanding at a CAGR of nearly 12% by 2024.

Related Initiatives

Sweet Revolution

Assistance for Setting up of Processing Units

Adopting Scientific Techniques