Bagged first prize among 27 centres from across India
Nauni/Solan: In a significant achievement, the apiculture research centre of the Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry (UHF), Nauni, has been adjudged by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) as the ‘Best Research Center (2016-18)’ in the country.
The Department of Entomology of the university runs the Solan centre of the All India Coordinated Research Project on Honey bees and Pollinators AICRP (HB&P). This the second year in a row that the centre has bagged this award.
The award was given at the Biennial Group Meeting of AICRP (HB&P) organized by ICAR at the School of Agricultural Sciences and Rural Development, Nagaland University last week. Scientists from 27 AICRP centres from across the country participated in the meet and presented their work. Three scientists from the UHF centre; Dr Harish Kumar Sharma, Dr Kiran Rana and Dr Meena Thakur also attended the meeting.
Dr PK Chakravarti, ADG ICAR conferred the award at the plenary session of the workshop in the presence of eminent apiculturist and former national coordinators of the AICRP (HB&P) Dr RK Thakur and Dr RC Mishra. Dr RK Thakur, who is currently serving as the Joint Director (Communication) at UHF also delivered the lead lecture during the event.
Ecstatic after the win, Principal Investigator Dr Harish Sharma said that the centre is engaged in research in diversified aspects of apiculture including managed honeybee pollination, bee botany, bee breeding, honeybee disease identification and their management, and standardization of technology for hive products. This is the only centre in the country where bumblebee rearing and its utilization in protected cultivation has been standardized.
Elaborating on the work done by the entomology department of the university, HOD Dr Divender Gupta told that the centre has been working for the overall upliftment of apiculture in the state with special emphasis on pollination management. He added that in order to establish bee breeders, the scientists have been providing technical backup for production of quality queens for increasing honey production and pollination efficiency. In addition, the centre has been providing specialized training on queen breeding and bee breeding to beekeepers from across the country including the north-east.
UHF VC Dr HC Sharma and Dean College of Horticulture Dr Rakesh Gupta congratulated the whole team for bringing laurels to the university.
