Promotion of Apiculture (HADP Project 6)

What is HADP Project 6 on apiculture?

Promotion of Apiculture is the sixth of the 29 projects cleared under the all-round Agriculture Development Programme (HADP) by the Agriculture Production Department, Government of Jammu and Kashmir. HADP has an outlay of Rs 5,013 crore over five years.

Beekeeping in Jammu and Kashmir, known locally as shahad ki makhi palan, is one of the few activities that pays twice; once in honey and once in the pollination services that lift apple, mustard, almond and cherry yields. The union territory has the flora for it: acacia and mustard in the Jammu plains in spring, followed by the valley's apple bloom and the high-altitude wildflower flush in summer. HADP Project 6 funds colonies, equipment, migration, processing and testing, and sets out the assistance rates activity by activity.

Production and growth components, with pattern of assistance

Post-harvest management components

Colonies are distributed as a unit of 50 colonies in a cluster by extension functionaries under the implementation guidelines, while the corresponding form on the Kisan Sathi portal is framed as one unit of 35 bee colonies at Rs 4,000 per colony. Check the live form before you apply, as the figure shown on the portal is what governs your case.

The project also funds a separate stream for Apis cerana, the native bee, shifting colonies from traditional log hives into modern boxes at 100 per cent cost, with modern tool kits at Rs 1,000 per cluster, advanced queen-rearing training, honey festivals, organic certification and value addition.

Who is eligible for HADP Project 6?

You can seek assistance if:

• You are a resident of Jammu and Kashmir keeping bees, or willing to start, and can house the colonies safely.
• You already hold colonies and want the strengthening or equipment component at 40 per cent.
• You practise or intend to practise migratory beekeeping, in which case the incentive is computed for 50 colonies over a maximum haul of 300 kilometres.
• You are an entrepreneur setting up a honey processing unit, a collection and marketing centre, an equipment manufacturing unit or a custom hiring centre for pollination, each at 50 per cent.
• You are part of a beekeeper SHG of 10 to 20 members, formed by the Agriculture Department with support from PRIs.

You cannot apply, or are not eligible, if:

• You have already availed the same component under NBHM, MIDH, KVIC or another scheme. HADP bars duplication of activities.
• You are applying for the Centre of Excellence, GIS labs, mini honey testing labs, apitherapy centres, bee flora plantations or the DCTC strengthening component. These are institutional, executed by the department with SKUAST and NBHM, and individuals are not eligible for them.
• You are not resident in Jammu and Kashmir.
• You want a credit-linked case handled offline; no offline credit-linked HADP case is accepted.

What documents are required?

How to apply for HADP Project 6

1. Register on the Kisan Sathi portal at hadp.jk.gov.in using your mobile number and Aadhaar details.
2. Log in and open Project 6 to Promotion of Apiculture.
3. Choose the activity form you need: Availing Bee Colonies, Establishing Honey Processing Units, Establishing Apiculture Equipment Manufacturing Unit, Establishing CHCs, or Honey Collection / Storage / Marketing / Information / Technical Centres.
4. Fill in the number of colonies or the unit capacity, your district and block, and your existing beekeeping experience.
5. Upload Aadhaar and bank passbook, adding site papers and a DPR from the portal's DPR Generator where the activity is a fixed unit.
6. Submit and note the application reference number.
7. Let the extension functionaries verify your apiary or unit. Assistance is released back-ended through DBT, which the guidelines make explicit for colonies, CHCs, equipment manufacturing and processing components.

How to apply with offline help

1. Visit a Kisan Khidmat Ghar and ask the operator to file the apiculture form on Kisan Sathi for you.
2. Contact the extension functionaries of the Agriculture Department in your block. Under this project it is the extension staff who physically distribute colonies and equipment in cluster mode.
3. Join or ask to form a beekeeper SHG of 10 to 20 members. The department forms these with PRI support, and group applicants are handled together.

What training and capacity building is available?

• Farmer and beekeeper trainings and exposure visits: Rs 250 per person per day, delivered by Agriculture Department field staff, KVKs and resource persons from SKUAST or NBHM.
• Officer trainings and exposure visits — Rs 1,000 per person per day, with officers deputed to premium institutes in neighbouring states.
• Exhibitions, conferences and workshops to 100 per cent funded under ATMA norms, organised with KVKs, SKUAST and other stakeholders.
• Advanced training in queen rearing, bee breeding and nucleus stock under the Apis cerana stream, at 100 per cent.
• Strengthening of District Cum Training Centres (DCTCs) at 100 per cent from UT CAPEX, so existing centres get modern demonstration equipment.

How do I check my application status?

1. Log in at hadp.jk.gov.in with your registered mobile number.
2. The applicant dashboard shows the stage of each application: submitted, under verification, sponsored to bank, sanctioned or released.
3. If a sanctioned amount has not been credited, confirm the bank account is active and Aadhaar-seeded.

Why apiculture applications get rejected

• Duplication, colonies or equipment already availed under NBHM, MIDH or KVIC support.
• No verifiable apiary at the time of the extension officer's visit, so the back-ended release cannot be made.
• Colonies not maintained after distribution, which triggers recovery in addition to rejection of future claims.
• Migration not actually undertaken where the migratory incentive was claimed. The incentive is tied to real migration for harvest.
• Applying for an institutional component such as the Centre of Excellence or a testing lab.
• Bank refusal on the credit component of a processing or manufacturing unit.

Where do I raise a complaint?

• Use the Grievance link on hadp.jk.gov.in and follow it with Grievance Status.
• Contact the Agriculture Production Department at 0191-2505201 (Jammu) or at devagri-jk@jk.gov.in.
• Escalate through your Chief Agriculture Officer or the Mission Directorate, HADP.

Kisan Sathi registration is free, and no agent is authorised to charge you for securing colonies, equipment or a HADP sanction.