Role of Bee colonies in Honey production for Sustainable Livelihood in Anantnag District of Kashmir Valley, J & K

Abstract

Kashmir Valley has a tremendous potential for beekeeping due to the abundance of honey bee species, favourable climatic conditions and floral diversity. It contributes to the sustainable livelihood by increasing crop productivity through the process of pollination. The present study aims to examine Karl Pearson correlation between number of bee colonies and honey production since 2005-06 to 2017-18 in the district Anantnag of Kashmir valley. The secondary sources of data used for the investigation reveal that there is a strong positive correlation between bee colonies and honey production (0.834) in the study area. The number of bee colonies is seen as a dominating factor for honey production, thereby achieving sustainable livelihood and develop economy of the region. Beekeeping appears to be a critical component of sustainable agriculture and integrated rural development, as well as important for achieving food security and conservation of natural resources in the study area. Availability of diverse bee floral resources throughout the year helps in exporting quality honey to different parts of the world which promotes beekeeping in the study region.