Prolonged highway closure results in mass mortality of honeybees

Apiculture farmers of tehsil Banihal Saturday said that they suffered mass mortality of honeybees during traffic jam and road blockade between Battery Chashma and Digdol sector along Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.

The apiculturists said honeybees died en route during theirseasonal transit in trucks. “The bees in ‘beehive box shelves’ remained stuckin traffic jam resulting in their mass death,” said one of the farmers.

   

The farmers said they were transporting the beehive shelvesin trucks from plains of Jammu province to seasonally moderate areas ofBanihal.

They said as they reached Udhampur on Thursday morning alandslide had blocked the highway at Digdol. “The highway remained closed forseveral hours and when it was cleared, their trucks transporting the beecolonies got stuck in traffic jam between Nashri Ramban, Ramban Ramsu  for hours resulting into death of bees due toscorching heat and starvation.

They blamed many bee keepers were thrashed by the trafficpolice cops at different Nakas on highway, while they were pleading them toallow their movement further.

“We suffered heavy losses. It is our only source of income,we earn our livelihood by this trade,” said another bee keeper.

He said the beekeeping does not get insured here anddepartment of apiculture is showing their inability to provide any sought ofhelp for coping from the problem.

These farmers appealed the Apiculture Department and thedivisional administration Jammu for taking up the issue with the stategovernment so that suffered bee keepers are rehabilitated.

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