Pollination, an essential regulating ecosystem service (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005), is imperilled by several factors, of which urbanisation can have multidimensional effects. Agriculture in the peri-urban areas act as a source of food for cities, and the choice of crops is primarily governed by cities’ requirements. Commercialisation has led to an intensification of inorganic farming techniques as well as encroachment of wild/ semi-natural areas. A decrease in wild/semi-wild areas can affect pollinator diversity and crop production as they provide essential resources for pollinators. A significant proportion of the commercial crops are dependent on pollinators for their successful production. Hence impact on pollination service can have a cascading effect on the livelihood of the marginal farmer community. In addition, fluctuating climatic conditions can further jeopardise the pollination service, thus impacting the livelihood to a greater extent.

In this study, I examined the effect of urbanisation (urban demand for crops and land) on the pollination service and its likely impact on the welfare of the dependent farmer communities. I conducted this study in the Anekal taluk of Bangalore Urban district, one of the important vegetable hubs of Southern India. I chose, Chayote squash, a dominant horticultural crop from the Cucurbitaceae family, as the study species.

In the first chapter, I performed a comparative study between a normal and drought year to examine the role of plant-pollinator interaction in maintaining crop production along the gradient of urbanisation. I conducted pollination experiments in the Chayote farms to examine its dependence on pollinators and their contribution to the final yield of the crop.