-Down to Earth Most insects are not harmful but beneficial to humans; without them, nature will lose its balance Any small creature with six jointed legs and a body divided into three parts namely head, thorax and abdomen is known as an ‘insect’. They have wings, two antennae and an exoskeleton. Ants, Bees and flies are insects. ‘Entomology’ is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. There may be as many as...

-Down to Earth Investigation into the business of adulteration of honey This story begins in the mustard fields of north India where beekeepers are getting ready for the next honey season. When the yellow flowers are in bloom, the Bees suck the nectar and bring us goodness in the form of honey, which we then consume because of its many beneficial properties. We were alerted that beekeepers from this region and other...

-Livemint.com * Pollinators, especially Bees, are a vital part of our ecosystem, responsible for the food security of not just humans but all living beings. * The government needs to take steps for the protection of indigenous Bees before it is too late. In his address to the nation on 12 May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pointed out the criticality of local production. While its implications for industry et al have been discussed,...

-The Hindu Hundreds of species of pollinators may be in dangerous decline Across India’s agrarian plains, plantations and orchards, millions of birds, bats and insects toil to pollinate crops. However, many of these thousands of species may be in dangerous decline. In 2015, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) found that pollinators lead to huge agricultural economic gains. The report estimated pollinator contribution in India to be $0.831-1.5 billion...

-The Hindu Country’s high population makes it vulnerable to an ecological crisis, says World Wide Fund for Nature India’s soil biodiversity is in grave peril, according to the Global Soil Biodiversity Atlas prepared by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The WWF’s ‘risk index’ for the globe — indicating threats from loss of above-ground diversity, pollution and nutrient over-loading, over-grazing, intensive agriculture, fire, soil erosion, desertification and climate change — shows India among...