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Two varieties of bees native to Nagaland have been found to be doubly beneficial to farmers, according to a study conducted by Nagaland University. Not only are they stingless, but they are also efficient at pollination, a team of scientists from the university has found.
The two varieties are scientifically categorised as Tetragonula iridipennis and Lepidotrigona arcifera.
“We knew that traditional honeybees were important, but they had limitations — especially in delicate greenhouse environments or where the risk of stings posed a barrier. Stingless bees, native to this land, were largely ignored in agricultural research. We saw an opportunity,” Avinash Chauhan from the university’s Department of Entomology was quoted in a statement.
Chauhan and his team have been researching on the bees for nearly a decade.
As the research gained momentum, Chauhan and his team introduced these bees to greenhouse conditions, carefully observing their effect on crops like chilli, king chilli, cucumber, brinjal, watermelon, tomato, and even dragon fruit.
“In chilli, we recorded a nearly 30 per cent increase in fruits set with the help of stingless bees,” Chauhan explained. And not just quantity, quality improved too. Seeds were heavier, which means better germination. This is essential for farmers aiming for sustainable crops.
For king chilli — locally known and treasured — pollination success rose from 21 per cent to 29.46 per cent. In common chilli, fruit quality and seed weight also saw measurable improvements. The bees were not just pollinating — they were enriching the crops.
But it wasn’t just crops that thrived, according to the university statement. With stingless bees, came something equally sweet: honey. Their honey, prized for its medicinal properties, became an additional income source for participating farmers. And because stingless bees produce smaller quantities of highly concentrated honey, the risk of impurities or adulteration was minimised.
To harness this, the team worked on scientific rearing techniques for stingless bees. Colonies, once extracted from forest areas, were multiplied using queen cells and maintained in specially designed hives.
This wasn’t just a scientific achievement — it was a breakthrough in domestication. While stingless bees have long been kept in homestead apiaries in parts of southern and Northeastern India, proper scientific techniques had not been widely used.
The knowledge developed in Nagaland is now reaching Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, and other neighbouring states in the Northeast.
Chauhan and his team are already collaborating with farmers, training them in stingless bee rearing, and sharing techniques that merge tradition with science. For many rural communities, especially those with limited land or resources, this model offers a low-cost, high-return way to improve income and ensure food security.
The study by Chauhan and his team has been published in the International Journal of Farm Sciences.