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Greetings from BiggBees Honey Farms, Bhubaneswar, OD, IN

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BiggBees:
After completing my Diploma in Pharmacy in 1993, I pursued PGDCA and a few other IT courses to build my career in Medical Informatics. My last workplace was AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, where I provided my services as HIS Data Centre Engineer. Later got the responsibility of Domain Expert in NIC?s (a government of India enterprise) E-Hospital (pan-India) project.

I started keeping bees as a hobbyist around 1997 and then went on to get a university degree in apiculture. In 2017 I began to build a migratory beekeeping operation in Odisha, India, and currently run more than 150 hives, from which we make our livings. Apart from beekeeping, I am also involved in researching new methodologies, technologies, equipment, etc. in apiculture.

In 2018, I enlisted with KVK, CIFA, Kousalyaganga, Bhubaneswar and KVIB, Bhubaneswar as a resource person for training in beekeeping. To date, I have completed 108 (as of 10th Oct. 2024) training camps and trained more than 1500 new beekeepers.

Thank you and looking forward to learning and exploring more with all co-beekeepers present here.

Regards,
Susanta
BiggBees Honey Farms & Equipments

BeeMaster2:
Susanta,
Welcome to Beemaster. With all of your experience, I hope you become a regular contributor here on BeeMaster. I would really like know what it is like beekeeping in India.
I read somewhere many years ago that when varroa hit that India did not treat their bees and developed bees that survived without treatment. Is that true?
Jim Altmiller

Terri Yaki:
Welcome, Susanta. I am a first year beekeeper in USA, hoping to see my hive make it through the winter. I would love to learn from your experience and hope you are able to share your earned knowledge with us.

BiggBees:

--- Quote from: BeeMaster2 on October 16, 2024, 05:40:23 am ---Susanta,
Welcome to Beemaster. With all of your experience, I hope you become a regular contributor here on BeeMaster. I would really like know what it is like beekeeping in India.
I read somewhere many years ago that when varroa hit that India did not treat their bees and developed bees that survived without treatment. Is that true?
Jim Altmiller

--- End quote ---
Hi Jim,
You are right, The varroa mite was first reported in India in 1988 in colonies of the European honey bee Apis mellifera. The Apis mellifera was introduced to India in 1962 by Prof Ahluwalia of Punjab University. Still, we are having mites and other common bee disease problems in Apis Mellifera. But in the case of Apis Cerana Indica (which is native to the Indian subcontinent) not only Verrora Mites but also many other bee diseases hardly affect them. Apis Cerana Indica is mostly affected by Thaisac brood virus. Yield is very low compared to Apis Mellifera. I have Cerana Indica, Mellifera and Nikuti (Indian native stingless) bees in my apiary.

The15thMember:
Welcome to Beemaster, Susanta!  :happy:  Wow, it sounds like you have a lot of experience and how interesting that you keep species other than A. mellifera!  I'd love to hear more about the stingless bees.  I've read a little bit about stingless beekeeping in Mexico and Australia, but I don't know anything about the Indian stingless bees.     

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