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PU leads in honeybee’s education and research

LAHORE: Punjab University has taken lead in organizing honeybee-keeping classes and research programmes. The Department of Zoology has introduced apiculture (beekeeping) in MSc and BS curriculum. Its main aim is to start teaching, training and research work on honeybee breeding and management for production of honey and other by-products as well their utilization for pollination. Technical expertise and practical training is necessary for beekeeping. Therefore, national honeybee conferences, workshops and training courses have been organized by the University to interact for professional education and practice, and applied research for strengthening the research capabilities and setting up small micro-enterprises in various parts of the country. Department of Zoology Chairman Prof Dr Muhammad Akhtar said that honeybees ensure multiplication and continued existence of flowering plants in addition to the production of new and better varieties of seeds and fruits. It has been estimated that honeybees are 20 times more valuable as pollinators than as producers of honey. In view of the economic importance of honeybees, it is imperative to develop and encourage beekeeping as a hobby or full-time occupation. It is worth mentioning that honeybee colonies are migrated and kept moving form one place to another on different flora. No single area provides flora for honeybees round the year. Some of the important honey plants include almond, pears, peaches, apples, apricots, rape and mustard, citrus, acacia ('phulai'), clovers (fodder seed crops), sunflower and 'ber' plants. Accordingly, the bees are migrated on these flora to keep them healthy and prevent starvation. At the moment, the honeybee hives are at the Quaid-e-Azam Campus, in harmony with the season. Pakistani honey is rated quite high abroad especially in the Middle East countries. Beekeeping products other than honey include pollen, royal jelly, propolis, beeswax and bee venom, these by-products have innumerable commercial uses in both national and international market. Promotion of beekeeping at all levels will help to enhance family income and foreign exchange earnings through exports of bee products.