Experiential Learning Module (Commercial beekeeping) initiated by Plant Protection Division for the session 2019-20

The Plant Protection Division of PG Department of Agriculture, Khalsa College, Amritsar has started a training module ELM-424 (Commercial Beekeeping) for the students of B.Sc. Agriculture IV year for the session 2019-20 under the supervision of Randeep Singh (Asst Professor) and training instructor Gurleen Kaur. Out of the total 42 students, 14 have already completed the training programme in previous semester (July-Dec) while the remaining 28 are presently undergoing the same in the current semester (Jan-April), conducted in the Apiary of the college campus.

The module primarily focus on providing a thorough knowledge to the students about the honey bee morphology, mass rearing of queen bee, seasonal management of the bees, honey bee colony multiplication, disease and pest management, honey production, testing and marketing. Students are also encouraged to prepare a report which helps them to apply for bank loan. Beside honey production, the students will also be trained to extract honey bee wax, pollen, venom, propolis and royal jelly (bee hive products). Bee hive products are mainly an additional source of income for the bee keepers. Students will learn about these aspects in detail which will help them to start their own beekeeping business. The module aims at enhancing entrepreneurship skill amongst the students of the department and makes them aware of additional income generating subsidiary business.