From Pharmacy to Beekeeping: A Story of Innovation
My life has been an interesting mix of healthcare, technology, and nature. It all started when I earned my Diploma in Pharmacy in 1992. I began my professional career as a pharmacist at the renowned Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Pediatrics in Cuttack, Odisha. My interest in technology and my inquisitive nature soon made me seek further qualifications in computer applications.
I obtained a Postgraduate Diploma in Computer Applications (PGDCA), Diploma in Electronic Data Processing (EDP) and Management System, and a Diploma in Local Area Network (LAN) from BDPS. I have also obtained a Diploma in Oracle 7 from OCAC, Government of Odisha, and a Certificate in Computing for Information and Communication (CIC) from IGNOU. These acquisitions paved the way for new chances, and in 1995, I entered a faculty post at BDPS.
My professional life in the field of technology prospered as I transitioned to APTECH in Silchar, Assam, in 1996. By 1997, I had gained proficiency in computer hardware and networking, and this resulted in a position at "Computer Communication" (presently Printlink Computers & Communications Pvt. Ltd.). But this experience did not last long, as I soon got a contract from the Government of Odisha to develop and implement a computerized system for the Record of Rights (RoR) of landowners, i.e., Bhulekh.
This project was the starting point of my association with large-scale public utility projects. I then worked on the computerization of the Odisha Police, State Bank of India, Central Bank of India, and the Treasury Department of the Government of Odisha. My most notable project was the Odisha State Wide Area Network (OSWAN), for which I was in charge of planning, designing, procuring, implementing, testing, and managing the entire network throughout the state.
After a satisfying life in the tech industry, I became part of AIIMS, Bhubaneswar as the Head of Department of Hospital Information System. This experience was the most defining moment in my career, associated with an institution of national importance. After AIIMS, I participated in yet another challenging task as a Domain Expert in the eHospital project to connect 20 states under one network with medical facilities. I worked on a team consisting of more than 200 members in all 20 states.
In 2020, I retired from active duty and ventured into a new line of work as a beekeeper. I had learnt beekeeping from the Department of Horticulture, Government of Odisha, and the Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) from 2017 to 2018. I began my beekeeping enterprise using two Apis Cerena Indica bee colonies from OUAT and have expanded to 178 colonies. I also placed 11 stingless bee and 25 Apis Melifera (Italian) bee colonies in my portfolio.
Besides beekeeping, I also give training to novice beekeepers under the Khadi and Village Industries Board and the Department of Horticulture, both departments of the Government of Odisha, and some NGOs. In 2021, I started producing beekeeping items such as hives, honey extractors, smokers, and veils.
My interest in technology and beekeeping coincided when I began to design IoT tools for tracking my bee hives. I delivered a paper on the innovation during the 2022 World Honey Bee Day festival at OUAT. I have also designed a new kind of beehive out of recycled material and an always-connected smart hive connected through WiFi to a cloud server.
Presently, two universities are partnering with me on my pilot IoT device, the Cloud Routed Smart Apiary Monitoring System (CRS-AMS). This is the culmination of my transition from pharmacy to beekeeping, fusing technology and nature to bring forth something that is innovative in every sense.