India today has about thirty lakh bee colonies which produce 94.5 thousand MT of Honey, considering the modern beekeeping which arrived in India only three decades ago with the advent of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), today India has 35 lakh bee colonies as compared to 8 lakh bee colonies in 2005-06. The number of bookkeeping companies and societies has also incremented and as of January 2019, there are 9091 registered people in apiary business. 

• Like dairying, apiculture is also practised mostly by marginal and landless farmers.
• It also supplements income from agriculture, generates employment and also helps in improving the nutritional intake of the rural population. It provides employment to about 3 lakh rural people
• Honeybees are vital in sustaining plant bio-diversity and also improves yields of crops by cross-pollination. This increase has been shown to be in the range of 5 to 3000% depending upon the type of crop.
• Value of additional yield from pollination services by honeybees alone is about 15-20 times more than the value of all hive products put together.
• More than 50% of the honey produced, or 75-85% of apiary honey is being exported now.
• Just 4 States- West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Bihar contributed about 61% to the country‘s honey production.
• The National Commission on Agriculture had visualized the need for deploying about 150 million bee colonies for pollinating 12 major agricultural crops in the country.
• Presently, 200 million Bee colonies are required for enhancing their yield which will provide employment to 215 lakh persons and produce 10 million tones of honey and an increase in crop production.

• Government is promoting Beekeeping as part of its aim to double farmers’ income.
• The Government has allocated 500 crores towards Beekeeping under the Atma Nirbhar Abhiyan.
• National Bee Board has created four modules to impart training as part of the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) and 30 lakh farmers have been trained in beekeeping. They are also being financially supported by the Government.
• The Government has launched ‘Honey Mission’ as part of ‘Sweet Revolution’.
• India is among the world’s top five honey producers.
• Government is promoting Beekeeping as part of its aim to double farmers’ income.
• The Government has allocated 500 crores towards Beekeeping under the Atma Nirbhar Abhiyan.
• National Bee Board has created four modules to impart training as part of the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) and 30 lakh farmers have been trained in beekeeping. They are also being financially supported by the Government.
• The Government has launched ‘Honey Mission’ as part of ‘Sweet Revolution’.

As per Food and Agricultural Organization database, in 2017-18, India ranked eighth in the world in terms of honey production (64.9 thousand tonnes) while China stood first with a production level of 551 thousand tonnes. Further, beekeeping can be an important contributor in achieving the 2022 target of doubling farmer incomes.

Honey bees not only produce honey; they also pollinate the crops to get higher yield and a better quality of produce. It has been found that if the pollination is well-managed, crop yields increased by a significant median of about 24% and the efficient pollination of flowers also helps to protect the crops against pests. So, beekeeping is the best Agri-Business in current situations, especially for the rural areas, where it can act as a secondary source of extra income. Beekeeping cannot be restricted to honey only, products such as royal jelly, bee wax, pollen, propolis and bee venom are also marketable at a good price and can help the farmers to enhance their revenue.

Besides honey bee, farmers get various other products by honey bees such as Bee Wax, Royal Jelly, Propolis or bee glue, Bee Pollen and Bee venom. All these products are very beneficial for humans and highly-priced in the market. Let's take a short view on these products and their market value.

Honey 

India's most trusted brand Dabur sells honey at the price of Rs 395 per Kg, Baba Ramdev's Patanjali honey costs Rs 275 per kg, Apis Himalaya honey sells 2 kgs honey at just Rs 366 and so on. Only some organic honey costs high but mostly available under 1000 Rs in market or e-commerce sites. 

Bee Venom 

Being a natural product with a high medicinal value Bee venom's costs from Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 a gm in Indian markets. However, if the bee venom is of very high quality, its price can vary, depending upon the cost of production, packaging, manufacturers' expenses, analysis price, dealer's commission, etc. 

Bee Wax 

Beeswax is a real organic wax created by honey bees. Its average price in the market is Rs 300 to 350 per kg. It is eatable too. It is used as a lubricant and waterproofing agent, for making candles, shoe polish, cosmetics, crayons, metal casting, vehicle, and floor polish, varnish, gum, carbon paper, electrical appliances, fabric industry, and food processing and packaging.  

Royal Jelly 

Royal jelly is used in medication, beauty care products, and as a dietary enhancement. Its cost varies nation to nation from Rs 4,000 to 5,000 a kg, and Rs 1.5 lakh to 1.8 lakh if processed or frozen. Indiamart sells processed Royal jelly at Fresh Royal Jelly at Rs 1.5 Lakh per kg. Around half a kg royal jelly can be extracted from a box per year.  

Propolis 

Propolis is another significant honeybee product. Propolis is utilized in human and veterinary medications and its cost differs from Rs 500 to Rs 2,000 for each kg. 

Pollen 

Bee pollen average price in the Indian market is about Rs 1250 per kg which can vary upon its quality. A beekeeper can collect around 25 gm pollen every day from one colony

Initiatives by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare

• 3 Integrated Beekeeping Development Centres have been approved/commissioned in 2015- 16 while another 7 are in the process
• Govt of India through National Bee Board has taken the following initiatives:

• Promotion of scientific beekeeping in the country.
• Setting up of Integrated Beekeeping Development Centres (IDBCs)/Centres of Excellence (CoEs) Registration of beekeepers. 6,241 beekeepers/beekeeping societies/firms with 10.63 colonies have been registered as on 31 Dec 2016
• Facilitation of SHGs of beekeepers

• Also, Integrated Development of Scientific Beekeeping (IDSB) Programme has been proposed under RKVY
• Under the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDC) being implemented by, Dept of Agriculture & Cooperation under MoF&W, Rs 500 crore has been approved for a 5 year period from 2017- 18 to 2021-22
• A Scheme under MIDC called “Pollination support through beekeeping” provides assistance to beneficiaries as under:

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