Beekeeping: A profitable business becomes vulnerable to climate change.

PESHAWAR -- Believing in his own abilities despite limited financial resources, Ataur Rehman was working against the time to shift his bees' boxes to a safer place after heavy torrential rains and flash flood that hit Peshawar division on Thursday.

Belonging to village Dheri Ishaq in district Nowshera, the 35-year-old beekeeper was assisted by his cousins to shift his 60 bee-boxes from inundated fields to a safer place after heavy torrential rains and flash floods in his hometown located on the bank of River Kabul.

Carrying boxes on their shoulders, he said weather's vulnerabilities including heat waves, torrential rainfall and flash floods mostly caused by climate change were making an adverse effect on beekeeping in the country.

Associated with the hard earned business for the last 15 years, Rehman said he assumed the responsibility of this job after the death of his elder brother, Haidyatur Rehman and had suffered great financial losses after all of his bee-boxes were washed away by 2010 floods.

'Following 2010 floods, I restarted beekeeping with limited resources and few boxes and today my business flourished courtesy of the financial support of my relatives,' he said.

'In the past, the beekeepers had shifted bees-boxes to Punjab and Azad Kashmir due to lack of bees flora plants in KP but now the situation has improved in our province owing to the billion trees afforestration project.

'I came from Wapda Town to buy 12 kgs bottles of my favorite jujube honey for my family and relatives due to its numerous health benefits,', Zeeshan Khan, an employee of Forest Department told reporter at Tarnab, the hub of honey's trade and business in Peshawar.

'For the last six years, I have been coming to Tarnab to buy my favourite honey and send it to my married sisters as 'gift,' he said, adding Rs 100 per kg increase was witnessed this year compared to last year in the market due to increase in fuel and transportation charges.

Sher Zaman, General Secretary, All Pakistan Beekeepers Association said that climate change has made an adverse effect on the beekeeping sector as evidenced by 2010 floods' devastation, heat waves and weather vulnerabilities.

He said increased effects of climate change, deforestation, cutting of bees flora plants and excessive use of a variety of poisonous pesticides on agriculture crops were weakening bees and making them susceptible to various ailments.

'Around 35,000 beekeepers including 7,500 registered were directly...

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