Beekeeping

Beekeeping offers a sustainable, profitable alternative for farmers and urbanites alike. With just a one-time investment, it enriches biodiversity and supports food security. Anyone over 15 can start with minimal space and time.

Beekeeping is no longer just for farmers — it’s catching on in cities, balconies, and backyard gardens too. Wondering what tools you’ll need to get started? We’ve broken it down for you.

Jagpal Singh Phogat, a teacher from Haryana, turned to beekeeping despite initial family scepticism. Overcoming early setbacks, he has empowered over 500 farmers to adopt beekeeping as a profitable, eco-friendly alternative to traditional farming.

R Vishwan was forced to steal food as a seven-year-old. Today, he has established his own honey-farming enterprise, earning in lakhs annually.

Colonel Sujan Mohanty had been in a fix over his future after his retirement in 2012. He wanted to break into a new venture but was baffled with the number of options available. His interest, however, lay in floriculture, which he eventually turned to.

Watch this video to see how Mumbai urban gardener Chetan Soorenji turned his terrace garden into a paradise of passionfruit, alongside a safe home for bees.

Gujarat-based couple Himanshu and Tanvi Patel run Svadya, which sells organic and raw honey, for which they practice beekeeping. This also serves as an alternative to the use of chemicals on their farm.

Joshy Mathew grows 80 varieties of organic fruits, vegetables and medicinal plants, does pond fishing and beekeeping - all on a meagre 25 cents of land

With the rise in construction and infrastructural developments, there is little space for the bees to pollinate especially in the urban cityscapes.

With about 350 coffee shrubs spread across three-fourths of an acre, the Belmar family has never had the need to purchase coffee from outside.