Sting operations with a difference
Rajendran Tamilarasan and K. Vasanthakumar are urban beekeepers in Chennai who have turned their childhood interests into sustainable businesses. They focus on educating the public about the importance of bees for pollination and biodiversity while managing bee colonies in urban settings. Their initiatives have shifted public perception, leading to increased interest in bee conservation rather than extermination.
- ▪Rajendran Tamilarasan runs T R Bees and Apiary, managing backyard bee colonies while working in IT.
- ▪K. Vasanthakumar operates Amudha Bee Farm, installing bee colonies in residential areas and promoting urban beekeeping.
- ▪Both beekeepers emphasize the importance of bees in pollination and biodiversity, conducting awareness programs to educate the public.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Removing bugs, raising beesFor Rajendran Tamilarasan, an IT professional based near Tambaram, beekeeping exists alongside software work, family life and ecological advocacy: a parallel world sustained less by commerce than by fascination. Originally from Mullukurichi village near the foothills of Kolli Hills in Namakkal district, he traces his interest in bees back to childhood memories of accompanying his maternal uncle during honey collection from wild colonies formed on coconut trees. “I would stand below creating smoke while he climbed up to harvest honey,” he recalls. Smoke, he explains, temporarily disrupts the bees’ scent-based communication system, reducing their ability to signal danger to one another.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Hindu — Top.
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