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Problems and prospects of beekeeping in rubber plantations in India (Record no. 65716)

MARC details
000 -LEADER
fixed length control field	03978nam a2200193Ia 4500
100 ## - MAIN ENTRY--AUTHOR NAME
Personal name	Jose V T
245 #0 - TITLE STATEMENT
Title	Problems and prospects of beekeeping in rubber plantations in India
260 ## - PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION, ETC. (IMPRINT)
Name of publisher	6th Asian Apicultural Association International Conference and World APIEXPO 2002, Bangalore, 25th Feb-1st March 2002
520 ## - SUMMARY, ETC.
Summary, etc	The paper covers the origin, development and present status of the rubber honey sector in India, analyses the comparative physical, financial and technical performance of the two major bee species viz. Apis cerana indica F and Apis mellifera L, highlights the problems being endured by the sector, assesses the future potential and proposes appropriate strategies for further development. The history of the development of the rubber honey sector which originated during 1920s at the initiatives of the European missionaries based in South Kerala and Tamil Nadu is documented. The rubber honey sector which accounted for a substantial portion of the honey production in the country from apiary sources during the late 1980s was seriously affected by the contagious TSBV disease permeated throughout the southern states of India during 1992. The production of rubber honey declined from 2750 tonnes in 1990-91 to 150 tonnes during 1992-93 substatiating the devastation of the traditionally domesticated A. indica colonies by the viral disease. Thereafter the colonies of the exotic A. mellifera species which had already been successfully domesticated in North Indian states were introduced in Kerala by the institutional agencies. From 1994 onwards the A. indica colonies showed signs of gradual recovery and the production of rubber honey reached 1750 tonnes by 1999-00. The rubber growers have been encouraged through extension and incentive schemes to take up beekeeping as it is perceived as a potential source of ancillary income to sustain the viability to rubber cultivation in the present context of depressed prices of rubber. In spite of the conscious efforts of the institutional agencies to popularise A. mellifera, the traditional beekeepers in South India, especially in Kerala, have been envincing a keen preference for A.indica species due to a variety of factors. The share of A.mellifera colonies in rubber plantations is estimated to be less than 20 per cent of the total. The annual comparative yield of the two species during 1988-2000 period generated from a continuous monitoring scheme is analysed. The profitability of the two species is analysed on the basis of the estimated indicators viz, net income, family labour income and benefit-cost ratio (BCR). The technical suitability is analysed on the basis of the comparative performance of the species with regard to the nature and features of the rubber plantations as a source of honey and technical aspects such as susceptibility to the attack by predators, potential for migratory beekeeping, comb development over to supers, ease in restoration after desertion, need for artificial feeding etc. The present procurement, processing and marketing systems in terms of the procurement systems at the auspices of institutional and other agencies, type of processing, sales composition, price realisation, sales destination etc are evaluated. The prospects of the rubber honey sector in India are analysed on the basis of the physical production potential, emerging trends in the rubber sector and the socio-economic background of the rubber growers. The performance of the sector is compared with the potential so as to assess the present status and identify the problems being faced. On the basis of the findings of the study appropriate strategies are proposed for the effective sustenance and development of the sector.
650 ## - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM
Topical Term	Beekeeping
650 ## - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM
Topical Term	India
650 ## - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM
Topical Term	Rubber honey
650 ## - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM
Topical Term	Rubber plantations
700 ## - ADDED ENTRY--PERSONAL NAME
Personal name	Joseph T
700 ## - ADDED ENTRY--PERSONAL NAME
Personal name	Veeraputhran S
856 ## - ELECTRONIC LOCATION AND ACCESS
Uniform Resource Identifier	Reprint
942 ## - ADDED ENTRY ELEMENTS (KOHA)
Koha item type	Journals

Holdings
Withdrawn status	Lost status	Damaged status	Not for loan	Home library	Current library	Shelving location	Date acquired	Koha item type
			Journals	RRII Library	RRII Library	Rubber general	18/03/2002	Journals