NBHM team along with participants and others after observing
World Bee Day 2025 in Jalukie town on May 20.
MOKOKCHUNG — The
Nagaland Community Conserved Areas Forum (NCCAF), in collaboration with the
Nagaland Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM), celebrated World Bee Day 2025 in
Jalukie town under Peren district on May 20.
Bringing together village leaders, grassroots communities
and stakeholders, the programme underscored the vital role bees in conserving
biodiversity, food security and sustainable rural livelihoods. It also urged
action to protect pollinators amid global threats.
Delivering the keynote address, Khuvozoyi Vese, NBHM deputy
team leader, described bees as ‘architects of life on earth’ and warned that
the ecosystem would collapse without them.
Vese noted that bees pollinate 90% of flowering plants and
75% of global food crops, underscoring their role in biodiversity and
nutrition. Highlighting Nagaland’s 13,500 sq. km of bee-forage area and native
species like Apis cerana and Tetragonula, he called for urgent measures against
habitat degradation, pesticide use and climate change.
“Bees are bio-indicators; their decline signals an
environmental crisis,” Vese said.
The first session, chaired by Seve Vadeo, secretary of
NCCAF, began with an invocation prayer said by Rev. Kuzierang Thou, former
state chaplain, followed by a historical overview of NCCAF’s conservation
efforts by chairman, Heirang Lunglang.
The second session, facilitated by Setsachem Sangtam,
treasurer of NCCAF, focused on scaling apiculture through practical and policy
strategies.
Bokali A Chikhe, NBHM team member, outlined beekeeping’s
transformative potential with Nagaland’s current 440 metric tons of honey (INR
39.6 crore) poised to reach 30,000 metric tons of honey and 50 metric tons of
beeswax, potentially injecting INR 750 crore into the rural economy.
“Beekeeping is inclusive, requiring minimal land and
empowering women, youth, and landless farmers,” she said.
Chikhe highlighted bees’ role in pollinating wild flora and
supporting agroforestry, citing ‘Eco-Api Villages’ that integrates apiculture
with organic farming, fisheries, and terrace agriculture.
To address the challenges like market volatility and high
organic certification costs, she stated that NBHM is in the process to train
22,000 beekeepers, promote eco-friendly hives and strengthening local value
chains via village beekeeping committees and women self-help groups.
The special guest and deputy commissioner of Pern, Hiazu
Meru, emphasised the critical role played by bees in organic farming.
“Bees are the backbone of chemical-free agriculture,
ensuring ecological balance and sustainable incomes,” he said.
Tokugha Sumi, NCCAF vice chairman, advocated reviving
traditional ecological wisdom and forest stewardship, reinforcing bees as
guardians of biodiversity and food systems.
