The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has distributed more than one lakh bee boxes among the farmers and unemployed youths across the nation in less than two year under a programme named ‘Honey Mission’ launched in August 2017 from the Presidential Edifice at Rashtrapati Bhawan.
During this process, KVIC achieved many landmarks. First, on 21st May 2018 on World Honey Bee Day, KVIC made a World Record of distributing maximum number of bee-boxes in a single day by distributing 1,000 bee-boxes among 100 Mishing Asamese tribe in the Kaziranga forest area, beating previous best of 841 in Israel in 2016.
KVIC also made a new World Record of distributing maximum number of 2330 bee-boxes in a single day in the Zangalee Army area at Kupwara in Jammu & Kashmir among 233 beneficiaries, in association with Indian Army’s Sadbhawna Programme.
KVIC Chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena said that following the Prime Minister’s call of ‘Sweet Revolution’, the KVIC immediately made an action plan on this line named ‘Honey Mission’.
“We have so far distributed 1,01,000 bee-boxes, across the country, which had happened for the very first time in India. We have not only distributed bee-boxes, rather under ‘Honey Mission’, we have also created more than 10,000 new employment, besides creating around 25,000 additional man days through the fabrication of Bee boxes and Honey Extractors,” he said, adding, “The KVIC has also provided the bee-keepers practical training about examination of honeybee colonies, acquaintance with apicultural equipments, identification and management of bee enemies and diseases, honey extraction and wax purification, and management of bee colonies in spring, summer, monsoon, autumn and winter seasons.
Saxena, who himself monitors the progress of ‘Honey Mission’ round-the-clock, further said that besides production of healthy honey and wax, bee-keeping would open many job avenues for the unemployed youths and aspiring young entrepreneurs.
“Being the nodal agency of Prime Minister Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), the KVIC would provide loans for setting up units of processing, packaging and labelling units for the honey,” he added.
It may be noted that through ‘Honey Mission’, so far 246 metric tonnes of honey has been extracted through these Bee-Boxes only, valuing over Rs 4 crore.
Besides, if the farmers are to be believed their crops yield has increased up to 30 percent after the implementation of ‘Honey Mission’.
However, assessment of gains in crops’ yield in terms of money, has not been ascertained as yet.