An NGO in India is striding towards nation-building

Every day, Akshaya Patra provides school lunch to more than 1.6 million children across 34 locations in 12 states of India.

Witnessing the interest of Aditya’s interest in computer and solar energy, Akshaya Patra partnered with ITI to provide a computer lab to the school so that children can receive practical knowledge along with theory lessons.

Heeding to Manjula’s interest in theatre and acting, Akshaya Patra enrolled her for a month long mentorship programme at the Bangalore School of Speech and Drama, following which she shone bright at a stage performance.

Akshaya Patra has partaken in several disaster relief activities by providing food to affected people in crisis situations like the devastating Nepal Earthquake and Chennai floods in 2015, the Gorakhpur flood in 2017, and the like.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is an NGO in India that was initiated with the vision, ‘No child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger.’ Since its genesis in 2000, this NGO has been striving to address the critical issue of classroom hunger and accessibility to school education through its Mid-Day Meal Programme. Initially, the Foundation served school lunch to just 1,500 children in five government schools in Bengaluru. Taking note of the crucial requirement of school meals, Akshaya Patra gradually began expanding its operations to other parts of the country as well. The Public-Private Partnership, good management, innovative technology, and transparent accounting policies have made the Akshaya Patra’s Mid-Day Meal Programme the world’s largest NGO-run school lunch programme. Today, Akshaya Patra operates 34 kitchens (32 centralised; 2 decentralised) across 12 states, feeding over 1.6 million children, every day.

The role of NGOs in the mid-day meal sector is to provide freshly cooked, nutritious meals to school children with the objective to:

• avoid classroom hunger
• increase school enrolment
• increase school attendance
• improve socialisation among castes
• address malnutrition, and
• empower women through employment

And, several studies done to assess the impact of Akshaya Patra’s meals suggest that the Foundation has been making steady progress in achieving the above-mentioned objectives.

Over the 17 years of service, Akshaya Patra realised that for an overall development of children and inclusive progress of the society, it has to fill certain gaps within its operational realm such as availability of nutritious meals in Anganwadi, providing a platform for children to hone their talents that will help in achieving their goals, and also being available for fellow citizens at the time of need such as natural disasters. So, while performing its core activity of providing mid-day meal, Akshaya Patra also impacts the society with its other feeding initiatives.

Witnessing the potential among its beneficiaries, this NGO in India endeavoured to go beyond just providing school meals with its 'Give Every Dream A Chance’ initiative. As a start, Akshaya Patra identified three beneficiaries Shivu, Manjula, and Shekar with the aim to become an astronaut, an actress, and a chef, respectively, and provided them with a month’s mentorship under experts in the mentioned fields. The impact of this initiative was:

Such initiatives are indeed of prime importance for the overall development of children, and Akshaya Patra is taking steps to implement it within its realm of service.

The dedicated service of the Foundation has been recognised in various forums and here is a mention of just a few of the laurels:

• Akshaya Patra has been ranked 23rd among the top 100 NGOs featured in the 2013 edition of The Global Journal.
• This top NGO has also been featured as one of the eight Indian game changers in the inaugural edition of Innowin (India’s first magazine dedicated to innovation).
• Akshaya Patra became the first NGO to comply with the IFRS and also the winner of the Gold Shield for Excellence in Financial Reporting by the ICAI for five consecutive years, inducting the NGO in the ICAI Hall of Fame.
• In 2006, Akshaya Patra was considered as a case study at the prestigious Harvard Business School as part of its MBA curriculum.

In an effort to multiply the impact of the Mid-Day Meal Programme, this NGO in India continuously enhances its technologies and processes by implementing Kaizen, Continuous Improvement Projects and Six Sigma methodologies in its kitchen operations. Alongside regular technological interventions, the Foundation has also adopted green initiatives such as biogas plant, briquette boiler, and solar power in some of its kitchens with the aim to reduce carbon footprint and operational costs. Also, in an endeavour to improve the nutritional intake of the beneficiaries, recently it launched a pilot in partnership with the Government of Karnataka to include millets in the school lunch programme.

Undoubtedly, the role of NGOs is significant and important for the overall development and progress of the society. And, organisations such as Akshaya Patra bring about a change in a sustainable manner, right from the grass root level, so that each child grows up to be an asset for the country. Join in the efforts of NGOs and be a part of nation-building.

We need your support for a new academic year!

If there’s one thing that parents dread, it’s convincing their children to get ready for a new academic year, especially after a good summer vacation. A new year can be fascinating but children always tend to be reluctant in giving up the carefree summer routine. On the other hand, there are many children who are eagerly waiting for school to begin because their lunch is taken care of. 

Akshaya Patra’s Mid-Day Meal Programme is currently available in 11 states including Assam, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh. But before the schools re-open, the Foundation is looking forward to donors’ charity support which will ultimately help millions of children.

What is Akshaya Patra’s role as an NGO?

With a mission to end classroom hunger, Akshaya Patra began its initiative called the Mid-Day Meal Programme. If the students are provided an incentive to attend school, they get encouraged to complete their education. Its meals constitute a balanced diet that’s delicious and motivates the kids to attend the classes every day. This venture is spread across 11 states today. Akshaya Patra also feeds the hungry in Uttar Pradesh where the percentage of undernourished kids is high. 

How can you support us?

Because undernourishment and illiteracy are social problems, their eradication plans would inevitably involve the contribution of society. There are a number of ways by which we can help the efforts to ensure maximum attendance of kids in school. Donors have the option of sponsoring a school for a year, fundraising or simply donating some amount to charity and help in feeding the children.

As the schools reopen in a few months, remember that there are a whole lot of children who are in need of nutritious food. This is possible with your support towards Food for Education initiative by Akshaya Patra – an effort to aid 13,577 government schools in India. 

To encourage children to attend school, Akshaya Patra urges people to donate to charity, and most importantly, for the betterment of the future.

Why Mid-day Meal in Andhra Pradesh need Support?

One of India’s populous states and a coastal region, Andhra Pradesh is rich in history. Akshaya Patra, an NGO present in Vijayawada and other districts of this state, aims to feed the children with nutritious mid-day meals in order to encourage them to attend school.

Mid-day meal scheme in Andhra Pradesh and 10 other states has its benefits and India is at a stage where initiatives like this will contribute to nation-building. Food for education by Akshaya Patra (with a varied mid-day meal menu) is undoubtedly one of the solutions which will also contribute to Sustainable Development Goals – to eradicate global hunger by 2030.

Here are some of the reasons why your support will help our country achieve its mission:

To counter classroom hunger

According to United Nations – World Food Programme hunger statistics, 66 million primary school-age children attend classes hungry across the developing world. To add to this, many children give school a miss due to hunger. To address this issue, Akshaya Patra began its Mid-Day Meal Programme which is now reaching out to over 1.6 million children. The programme looks forward to providing freshly cooked nutritious meals to children which eliminates hunger and encourages children to be a part of our educational system. With your support, we can reach out to more children to help them receive food and education.

To reach the unreached

As an NGO, our role is to reach underserved and unfed children across India. By implementing Mid-Day Meal Programme, children not only receive adequate nutrition, but also education. Yet while our intention and spirit are ready, our resources need your support. Reaching millions of children in India or feeding the hungry is a tall order and we have come thus far due to millions of generous hearts. You can simply sponsor a child so you help a child in Andhra Pradesh get education and food.

To feed the children

The blue bus: Akshaya Patra uses custom-designed insulated vehicles to deliver food from kitchens to school. So firstly, there is no spillage during transportation, and secondly, children are served fresh, hot meal every day. These vans leave from kitchens a few minutes before lunch time and ensure every beneficiary school receives food. You can support our meals on wheels by sponsoring a delivery van for effective operations of mid-day meals.

Akshaya Patra’s focus is to build a nation of hunger-free children and simultaneously encourage education. Mid-day meal scheme in Andhra Pradesh promises a healthy childhood for the state’s children. You can make your contribution by sponsoring a child or by getting involved with the Foundation’s activities. Just as Mother Teresa put it, ‘It's not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.’ Feed the children today by donating to Akshaya Patra. The children in Andhra Pradesh and all over India await your valuable help.

16 Years Ago, Akshaya Patra Began a Journey of Hope

It’s been 16 years and 16 lakh children are being benefitted through Food for Education initiative. On this yet another milestone, we would like to say Thank You!

The Mid-Day Meal Programme – Unlimited Food for Education, began in the year 2000 serving 1,500 children in Bengaluru. Today, over 1.6 million children across the length and breadth of India are supported by this initiative. Akshaya Patra’s journey was inspired by Srila Prabhupada’s compassionate vision that ‘No child should be deprived of education because of hunger.’

For Akshaya Patra, innovation has always been one of the driving forces. With advanced technology implemented kitchens, we are able to feed a large number of children. For instance, roti making machine has the capacity to churn out 200,000 rotis from 6000 kg of wheat flour. With help from Central and State Governments, the organisation has been able to expand its service in many states across 11 states in India. The organisation has also achieved many milestones and won prestigious awards that recognise its contribution in the development sector; the recent one was Nikkei Asia Prize for significant achievements in ‘Economic and Business Innovation’ category. Apart from feeding programme to feed the hungry, the organisation continues to conduct activities in schools such as health check-up camps, distribution of hygiene kits, school shoes and bags, and other initiatives that encourage a child to continue education.

Akshaya Patra’s 16 years of relentless efforts was founded with determination and compassion. We believe this journey will continue to impact many more children in the coming years. This year, as we also complete the serving of 2 Billion Meals, the Foundation acknowledges the outpouring support it has received over the last few years.

Let us pledge to support children’s education and health for a heal thier future!

Are Mid-Day Meals Playing a Role in a Student's Academics?

In the last five decades, literacy has evolved and shaped India in many facets - be it industrialisation, per capita or even the standard of living, literacy takes the credit. When you examine the literacy graph of India and compare numbers, the gradual developments bring a smile – thanks to the government benefits and donations for education in India. While there are many factors that play a role in achieving 100% literacy rate, a children’s NGO, Akshaya Patra, is focusing on enabling a student’s academic performance through food for education initiative – the Mid-Day Meal Programme.

Implemented in 2000, Akshaya Patra’s Mid-Day Meal Programme (food for education initiative) is now the world’s largest NGO-run feeding initiative based out of Bengaluru in Karnataka. Every day, over 1.6 million children are benefitted through this programme which prepares and delivers fresh-nutritious food to 13,260 schools at lunch time. 

Here’s a quick look at two main factors that affect a student’s academic performance:

Learning facilities and environment: It’s rather difficult to expect a child to learn in a classroom without sufficient study materials (text books, notepads, pen, and etcetera) and grasp lessons. It’s more problematic if the school is set up in a noisy surrounding and the exchange between teacher and students is put to a stop. While the government is making continuous efforts to provide provisions to children and build better infrastructure, many NGOs, with the help of education donations, have sprung to lend help to the government in ensuring children excel in their academics.

Socio-economic status: In many scholarly articles and research studies, it has been proved over and again that the socio-economic status of a family is an integral criterion for student’s performance – this includes the family members’ occupation and revenue which defines the economic condition. Akshaya Patra enables many families by providing a resource to their children – mid-day meals – which in turn lessens the strain of feeding a stomach in the house. To ensure the child does not have to bear the responsibilities of earning, the Foundation through its programme encourages every child to attend school and also be assured to eat healthy meals.

Why are Mid-Day Meals a boon to children?

It is a resource that stabilises education.  But along with it come nutrition, good health and well-being, academic achievement and quality performance. Akshaya Patra, with its dynamic initiative to provide food for education, has reached the milestone of serving more than 2 billion meals in the last 16 years. This milestone is a greater encouragement for the Foundation to continue its mission. 

Yes, mid-day meals are a boon to children and for the nation. Here’s why:

- More children enrol in schools

- Promotes socialisation among children

- Reduces classroom hunger

- Enhances a student’s performance (academic, sports and cultural)

A quick thought for the mind: Post-independence, India faced many challenges in the field of Growth and Development. However, through numerous benefit schemes and opportunities, we as nation, are witnessing change in every field. Akshaya Patra’s initiative too intends change. 

We believe every child deserves a fair chance and there is nothing more important than imparting education. Donate for education in India by joining Akshaya Patra in making every school a model of literacy development.

Giving – A Hallmark of the Extraordinary

In these times of fast cars and faster jobs, a sense of forlornly meandering through a mindless existence often sets in. Leisure, pleasure and privilege often find themselves helpless against this undercurrent. One thing, done in however small a quantity, that always warms the spirit and lifts it, is the act of giving. Those who feed the hungry or donate to charity, offering financial aid or time and resources, will vouch for the exhilaration they feel upon making worthy contributions. Giving undoubtedly makes one an extraordinary individual – in their own eyes as well as in the eyes of others.

One might scoff at the surety with which the statement has been articulated, but there are numerous reasons why it stands true. Firstly, one’s self-image is of paramount importance. Ironic though it is, giving enhances one’s self-worth because the act puts others before oneself. In a world that believes that individuals are wired to be selfish, doing something truly selfless makes one remarkable indeed. Secondly, with the suffering, wealth disparity and wars that are a common fixture, the smallest measure, be it charity fundraising or sponsoring the education of an underprivileged child, matters in making the world a kinder place.

Charity is also a mutually beneficial relationship for all those involved in the exchange. It helps one connect with individuals who are in a vastly different place in life as compared to themselves. This gives one the power that is rare indeed – one to empathise with one’s fellow beings, rather than just sympathise with them. Empathy – the ability to truly understand the other person by putting oneself in his/her shoes – is a hallmark of a mind that has grown and evolved. It allows one to be humane, instead of just human.

In the age of materialism, giving also helps one manage its stresses and uncertainties by nudging one towards the spiritual. Spiritual wellbeing is as important as material success. Giving, which helps one look beyond oneself to the oneness of the universe, is a spiritual activity that helps individuals love and be at peace with themselves. The greatest minds in the world have all extolled the benefits of charity, and now, scientific research backs these ideas, which go back thousands of years. Giving, in its essence, is a way towards self-realisation.

Help nourish a schoolchild’s dream of uninterrupted education by supporting Food for Education. Donate to Akshaya Patra for mid-day meal programme now!

Empowering Every Child's Dream

In 1878, two American brothers took an interest in aeronautics at a very young age when their father brought home a toy helicopter which was made out of paper. A few years later, upon realizing their dream, they went on to create the world’s first flight. A chance to achieve their dream came in different forms – funds from a cycle repair shop, drawings of flights by engineers and artists and most importantly support from fellow beings around them. Today, Wright Brothers’ success story needs no introduction.

Children’s dreams can be honest and genuine and their minds are free to create blueprints of what they want to achieve in their life. When little minds aspire to achieve something and work towards the dream, it empowers them in discovering their abilities and strengths. However, in India, we have more than 17 million children who do not have access to basic education or even a square meal which forces them to limit their aspirations and give in to the hardship of earning few rupees a day. In a situation like this, dreams that have great potential to see success get defeated. To relieve children from such unfavorable circumstances, it is important that we, as a society, not only help them access the basics but also encourage them to dream big.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation, an NGO for children that provides mid-day meals to more than 1.5 million school goers every day, believes in giving every child’s dream a chance simply because they are not meant to be trapped in the mind. The initiative ‘Giving Every Dream a Chance’ was launched recently by the Foundation and aims to act as a guiding star for children in getting a step closer to their dreams. As a pilot project, the three Akshaya Patra beneficiaries underwent a successful two-month mentorship programme with an expertise from their field of interest and the Foundation now plans to stretch the initiative to multiple cities across the country. With the right guidance, children with dreams will be able to understand their aspirations and also develop their skills.

In a world that is aggressively competitive, a dream does not become a reality unless you believe and give it a chance and the success once you have achieved it, surmounts the hard journey. With a belief that every child’s dream in our country deserves a fair chance, the initiative 'Giving Every Dream a Chance' has been launched by The Akshaya Patra Foundation. Meanwhile, the mid-day meal programme by the foundation continues to tackle hunger surge among children across many states and nourish the minds for improved concentration in classrooms.

Shekar - The Aspiring Chef

Manjula - The Debuting Actress

Shivu - The Aspiring Astronomer

Join Akshaya Patra on their journey where hundreds of children from across the country will be benefitting from the initiative ‘Giving Every Dream a Chance.’ To help children dream fearlessly, the focus continues to be hunger relief among school goers through nutritious mid-day meals. By contributing Rs. 750, you can feed a child for an entire year! To help us achieve this, donate here.

Challenges in Implementing the Mid-Day Meal Programme

To retain a hungry child in the classroom is a major problem faced by the teachers and parents in government schools. A hungry student cannot learn or understand what is being taught in the class. Hunger causes impaired mental growth, physical growth and even reduces the attention and concentration of children.

Poverty and malnutrition among students, hailing from low income families have become a major concern in India.  As a result, the Mid-Day Meal Programme was launched to universalise primary education, increase enrolment rates, reduce dropout rates as well as improve the nutritional status of students in primary classes.

Akshaya Patra implements the mid-day meal programme in partnership with the Union Government and State Governments. The organisation reaches out to 1.5 million children a day and is the largest school lunch programme in the world.

Let us see some of the challenges Akshaya Patra has to face in implementing the mid-day meal scheme.

• Providing the right quantity of food to each and every student with the right amount of nutrients, vitamins and minerals so that beneficiaries are not devoid of any essential nutrient.
• Reaching out to places where road connectivity is not smooth especially in rural areas. 
• Employing enough man power, so that meals can be prepared in vast quantities.   
• Having variety in the menu. Children would savour the meals only if different varieties of curry are served each day with rice and roti.

In spite of all the challenges, Akshaya Patra reaches out to its 1.5 million children with all efficiency and competency. Not even a single day the organisation has missed to deliver a meal as the organisation understands that this could be the only meal for many of its beneficiaries.

Hunger is really a challenge but to retain a hungry child in the classroom is more challenging. Hunger is an obstacle that hinders the child’s learning process.

Child hunger is a social issue that together we can solve. So let us donate to Akshaya Patra. It takes just Rs. 750 to feed a child for a year! Every donation of Rs. 500 or above made to Akshaya Patra is eligible for 100% tax exemption under section 35 AC or 50% tax exemption under Section 80 G of the Indian Income Tax. 

Let us donate to Akshaya Patra and help serve children to end class room hunger. 

BEML Donates a Van to Akshaya Patra’s Mid-day Meal Programme

As a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, Bengaluru-based heavy equipment manufacturer, Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) donated a meal delivery vehicle to The Akshaya Patra Foundation (TAPF). The mid-day meal delivery van is insulated to maintain optimal temperature, which keeps food warm and fresh.

It was inaugurated at the ISKCON temple premises, Rajajinagar, in the presence of Shri Madhu Pandit Dasa, Chairman, TAPF, and Shri P. Dwarakanath, Chairman and Managing Director, BEML.

This meal delivery vehicle donation by BEML will equip Akshaya Patra’s Bengaluru unit to deliver nutritious meals to about 4,000 children each day.

To know more about the donation, visit: www.akshayapatra.org/events/beml-donates-meal-delivery-van

Akshaya Patra uses Technology to Feed Millions

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is the world’s largest Mid-Day Meal Programme. The Foundation was borne out of a desire that children should not have to choose between hunger and education. Therefore from the vision that ‘No child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger’ Akshaya Patra was started in the year 2000. Beginning with feeding just 1,500 children across 5 schools in Bengaluru, today the Foundation has grown to feed over 1.4 million children across 24 locations, and 10 states of India.

Akshaya Patra aims to end classroom hunger in India through mid-day meal programme. Leveraging technology to facilitate large scale cooking in a short amount of time, The Akshaya Patra Foundation has served as a case study to prestigious institutes for its operations model. Based on a successful Public-Private Partnership model with the Central and State Governments of India, corporates, donors and other stake holders, the Foundation has managed to scale up and sustain its operations over the past 15 years.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation also uses innovative technology to maintain absolute hygiene and efficiency in its practices. 22 of the 24 kitchens are centralised, and are highly mechanised. This reduces human contact with the food to a large extent, ensuring that the food remains safe and hygienic throughout the cooking process. At Akshaya Patra it is also understood that the food must be enjoyable too, therefore the organisation follows a North and South Indian menu to suit the local palate.

To end child hunger in India, the support from the society plays an important role. Support Us.

What drives people to connect and contribute to a NGO?

What is the NGO all about? What does it do? Is it making a difference? How is it using funds in what it does? Why is it doing, what it does? Can it be trusted? These are a few of the palpable questions in one’s mind before making decision to act upon supporting a NGO.

 As Akshaya Patra, as a world renowned NGO, what is the impact we are generating to make people act and help it make a change? What is our identity? It says we run the world largest NGO-run mid-day meal programme. The answer itself gives birth to many more questions which need to be answered. Are we building a personal connect with the people? When we say we are feeding millions of children in an effort to eliminate classroom hunger. When we say we nourish minds and nurture dreams. When we say we provide unlimited food for education. Are those enough to paint a real picture?

Questions need to be answered at the right time with the right information so the organisation stands out amongst other. Many people support because they connect with the work Akshaya Patra does. Helping children every day with nutritious food, yes! It builds that connection with many people. But there are others who look in for more before they decide to lend a hand. Some try to find out what’s in for them. One may say,

“Yes! I am making a difference in children’s lives for the better is good enough for me.”

Or the fact that one get 100% tax exemption when one makes a donation above rs.500 make a positive impact to react. Or issues The Akshaya Patra Foundation is constantly trying to mitigate make one extend a helping hand. Some people asked about how the funds are spent, and Akshaya Patra has proper and unadulterated answers which make people get a clear picture. That does make a good impression. Akshaya Patra is the only NGO to be inducted in the ICAI Hall of Fame for winning the Gold Shield Award for Excellence in Financial Reporting five years in a row. That shows the commitment the organisation has on being transparent.

Akshaya Patra as an NGO in India needs to answer any and every questions related to its work and cause because that is what will drive people to connect and contribute to the organisation.

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Impact of mid-day meal on growing children

Over the years, the Mid-Day Meal Scheme has proved itself to be a supporting pillar in the overall development of children even at the grass root level of the society. The Scheme that was initiated by Government of India is being implemented by various Non-Governmental Organisations too. The Akshaya Patra Foundation is one among the various NGOs. Akshaya Patra began providing school lunch at five Government schools in Bengaluru city of Karnataka in 2000. This was even before the official central mandate in 2003 by the Government of India to provide free cooked mid-day meal at all Government schools. But after the mandate was passed, Akshaya Patra partnered with the Government of India in providing cooked meals at schools. Since then, Akshaya Patra has been working in a Public-Private Partnership model to achieve the six objectives of the Central Mid-Day Meal Scheme i.e.:

• Eliminating classroom hunger
• Increasing school enrolment
• Increasing school attendance
• Improving socialization among castes 
• Addressing malnutrition, and
• Women empowerment

During the course of implementing the mid-day meal programme for 15 years now, Akshaya Patra has also conducted impact studies of the programme in association with noted research organisations. The Akshaya Patra kitchen process and operations has also become a part of prestigious institutes like Harvard Business School. Below are mention of few impact studies that clearly showcase the significance and potential of the mid-day meal programme in eliminating classroom hunger, improving child health and also increasing enrolment and concentration of children.

• ‘Assessment of Mid-Day Meal Programme In 8 States’ by Sigma Research and Consulting Pvt. Ltd.
• ‘Impact Assessment Study Report of The Akshaya Patra Foundation - HPCL Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects (2012-13)’ by Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS)
• ‘Report on Measuring the Impact of Mid- Day-Meal on Child Growth’ by Department of Public Health Manipal University
• ‘Evaluation of the Mid-Day Meal Programme – June 2012’ by Kusuma Trust U.K.
• ‘Impact study 2012’ by Edumedia
• ‘Impact Assessment of The Akshaya Patra Foundation’s Mid-Day Meal Programme 2010’ by A.C. Nielsen
• ‘Akshaya Patra: Feeding India's School Children’ by Harvard business school

A click on Akshaya Patra Impact Studies will take you to the details of each of the above mentioned studies. To support Akshaya Patra, donate online to charity.

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@AkshayaPatraFoundation on Rediff |  https://www.youtube.com/user/akshayapatra

Bollywood Star Ranveer Singh campaigns for Akshaya Patra!

Since inception in June 2000, Akshaya Patra has seen involvement of people from all walks of life towards the noble cause of feeding children. Akshaya Patra always provides a platform for existing supporters as well as invites new supporters to get involved in nation building through feeding the young hearts. Over the years of implementing the mid-day meal programme, Akshaya Patra has witnessed that each meal has its own story and each beneficiary has his or her own special dream. Thus the Foundation has always thrived to provide quality, hygienic and tasty mid-day meal each day to each of the beneficiaries.

Currently, Akshaya Patra is operational in 24 locations of 10 states. Each day, Akshaya Patra feeds mid-day meal to more than 1.4 million children across Government schools. It aims to feed 5 million children by 2020. The task indeed is humongous but not unattainable. Working towards the mission, Akshaya Patra welcomes participation from each member of the country. The participation could be in the form of skill, time, funds, awareness creation or even volunteering. The recent partnership with Ching’s Secret is an exemplary one as it has brought in Ranveer Singh, the Brand Ambassador of Ching’s Secret and popular Bollywood Star to campaign for Akshaya Patra.

Ranveer has been actively involved in the planning and execution of the campaign called 'India Ke Hunger Ki Bajao'. The campaign aims to feed at least 1 million children across the country. Ranveer’s sincere support towards the children was witnessed as he offered his support to 10,000 children and sponsored their mid-day meals for an entire year at the launch of the campaign. Along with Akshaya Patra beneficiaries as Ranveer appeals in this video it just takes 10 seconds and a minimum amount of Rs. 750 to feed a child for an entire year. This amount has the potential to nourish and change the life of millions of young citizens. The campaign will receive broadcast in television, radio and digital platforms. It is also being supported by well-known brands like Yash Raj Films, India TV, Red FM, Reliance Fresh, Patel Bros., Paytm, Choitrams and Fluence.

Managing Director of Capital Foods (Ching's Secret's parent company), Ajay Gupta opines that it’s time to give back to the society and education of children will definitely lead to a better future of the country. Ranveer Singh too adds that he loves kids and being able to be involved with the cause of Akshaya Patra gives him immense joy. He believes that being the role of Indian youth, he will be able to spread the message and bring in maximum participation for the cause.

Follow us: @AkshayaPatra on Twitter | TheAkshayapatraFoundation on Facebook |

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Charity is not just fund contribution!

More often than not, charity is considered as supporting non-profit organisations through financial donations. But, today NGOs are making efforts to bring in a paradigm shift in the way people perceive charity. The non-profits are striving towards various creative and innovative ways to involve people and their talent for the greater good of the society. The word charity has gone beyond regular fund contribution. Now it taps the skill, time and willingness of people to do social good.

Here is an example of one such non-profit organisation. The Akshaya Patra Foundation is an Indian NGO working towards implementation of the mid-day meal programme. Initiated in 2002, the Foundation operates in a Public-Private Partnership model. Agreeing to the significant role that monetary support has played in setting up of the entire organisation and sustaining the NGO over 14 years; Akshaya Patra is also equally grateful to all the support that it received in terms of knowledge sharing, employing skills and investing time for the benefit of underserved children. Weighing the importance of both financial and non-financial support Akshaya Patra has derived a volunteering platform for supporters from all walks of life. The volunteering platform of Akshaya Patra accommodates activities that can be easily executed by individual, group and also corporate supporters.

The Get Involved section of Akshaya Patra will introduce you to a wide array of volunteering activities to choose from. Some of them being as simple as sharing Facebook and Twitter posts and thereby becoming an online supporter! One can also utilise his or her passion for bike riding as a medium to spread awareness about Akshaya Patra’s cause. If you are a photographer, you can tell Akshaya Patra’s story through your lenses! If you are a writer then share about Akshaya Patra beneficiaries in your blog. A corporate can partner with Akshaya Patra as a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility initiative. An innovation firm can support the cause by providing innovative technological advice to the Foundation.

Akshaya Patra welcomes social collaboration from each citizen. Let’s take this opportunity to give a new meaning to charity.

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On her way to a PhD!

We’ve always known that The Akshaya Patra Foundation’s mid-day meal programme has the power to transform lives, and here’s the proof. Saraswati, a beneficiary of the programme throughout high school recently walked into the Akshaya Patra office to have a chat with us on the direction her life has taken, since school.