The mid-day meal programme – Food for the soul

We always think of the happy, shining faces of young children as they eat their fill of the mid-day meal provided by The Akshaya Patra Foundation. But very rarely do we think of the joy and satisfaction it brings to the people involved in this venture. Not just the staff and employees of The Akshaya Patra Foundation, but the other irreplaceable individuals that help this process work. From teachers, physicians and volunteers, these kind souls have seen frail children transform into healthy children before their eyes, filled with hope and renewed vigor, a sight they cannot help but be moved by.

Mahendar Kumar, a popular physician in Vrindavan says, “Before the implementation of the mid-day meal programme, I used to treat a lot of children who would have fainted while assembling for the morning prayers at schools. But today it has reduced. In just over a six month period, I have seen children gaining up to two kilograms. The mid-day meal has proved beneficial, especially among girl children, which is evidently visible in their healthy physical growth.”

Kusuma B H, Principal of the Government Upper Primary School in Gori Palya, understands the importance of educating children. These children come to school every day and benefit from The Akshaya Patra Foundation mid-day meal programme. Every day, she fights to help them realise their potential. "I want them to be educated, secure with employment and more importantly, become good citizens of the country," she says.

The Akshaya Patra volunteers are no more immune to the joy that comes from helping these children in need. “It was a great experience visiting Akshaya Patra at Pathancheruvu and serving Mid-day Meals to the children of Zilla Parishad School in Shivanagar.  It gave me an insight into the great work that Akhaya Patra does as an organization by providing mid-day meals to under privileged children.  Some of the children wanted to become doctors, while others wished to be engineers, policemen or teachers. Spending time with them brought back our own childhood memories.   We left determined that it is our responsibility to give back to society and help at least a few students achieve their dreams,” says Nehali Sahu from Microsoft. 

Some have even started getting involved with The Akshaya Patra Foundation as young as their early teens. Monica Sadhu first began volunteering with The Akshaya Patra Foundation in the eighth grade. “"The children inspired me, they didn’t have a single ounce of shyness in them," she said. Now two years later, with a more evolved perspective on the cause, Monica inspires us all. “Though I was aware of the problems poor families face, I began to see them in real life. I understood that education is the only means by which India can be freed from the terrible cycles of poverty and hunger,” she says.

These are just some of the people behind this vast project. Their joy, dedication, frustration and tears have kept us on this long road to development. These people fight on every day, year after year, for the cause of ‘Food for Education’ and still find joy in it every day.

Follow us: @AkshayaPatra on Twitter | TheAkshayapatraFoundation on Facebook