The interviews and reporting for this story were conducted in 2024.

Farmers gathered around Jagpal Singh Phogat’s farm in Haryana’s Jhajjar district, intrigued by the sight of bee boxes placed across his wheat fields. A teacher by profession, Jagpal deftly handled the buzzing boxes, drawing laughter from the onlookers — including his own father.

“My family opposed my decision to start beekeeping, especially my bapu (father). He sarcastically said, ‘Arey master, gaay paal le, bhains paal le, bakri paal le, murgi paal le, makkhi ke pali? Ud javegi. (You could have opted for cow rearing or buffaloes, poultry, or goat farming, why did you choose to raise bees? They will fly away),” shares Jagpal as he recalls his father’s comment.

In 2001, beekeeping was an unfamiliar concept in their village. While many dismissed Jagpal as crazy, their views quickly changed when they witnessed the remarkable results.

“Within a month, I managed to fill at least 25 large tin containers with honey,” recalls Jagpal. “Until then, we had only seen honey in small bottles. Even my father was astonished and asked how much it could sell for. I told him each container was worth Rs 2,000. That was more than we could earn from six months of hard work on the wheat farm. Surprised, he said, ‘Why didn’t you start this sooner?’”

Coming from an agricultural background, where earning Rs 50,000 per acre from wheat farming was a challenge, Jagpal realised that beekeeping offered far greater advantages over traditional farming methods.

“Beekeeping requires a one-time investment and provides yields year after year, unlike farming, where you have to re-sow for every season,” Jagpal (59) tells The Better India. “That’s a big difference. Plus, any small farmer can start beekeeping, even without much land.”

We sat down with........

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