Apiculture as a means of self-employment; Dhakuakhana youths show the way

A CORRESPONDENT

LAKHIMPUR: Due to the lack of adequate scope for self-employment, unemployment has become a burning problem in the State at present. Under such circumstances, some youths living at Panigaon under Dhakuakhana subdivision of Lakhimpur district have attempted to engage themselves through apiculture.

Lakhyajit Koch, Papu Dutta and Parash Koch started their venture during the initial days of the nationwide lockdown to check the spread of COVID-19. The youths said that they caught a total of 25 swarms of bees in the first week of the lockdown in the neighbouring jungles by adopting special skills and they started rearing the bees in the residential complex of Lakhyajit Koch. For this purpose, they managed some wooden boxes so that the bees could build their hives in them. However, though the youths could tame 20 swarms of bees, they could not tame five swarms of bees which left their hives for unknown reasons. According to the youths, lack of adequate food provision might be the main reason why those bees left.

The 20 swarms of the bees have built their hives in the boxes and have also started to produce honey. The enterprising youths expect to get 4-5 litres of honey from each hive twice in a month.

Notably, apiculture or beekeeping, commonly in man-made hives, has much importance.

A beekeeper or apiarist keeps bees in order to collect their honey and other products that the hives produce, including beeswax, propolis, flower pollen, bee pollen, and royal jelly, to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers. Beekeeping provides honey which is a most valuable nutritional food. It also provides bee wax which is used in many industries, including cosmetics industries, polishing industries and pharmaceutical industries.

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