Gift a Meal this Diwali

Diwali, the festival of lights, marks victory of light over darkness. On this occasion, we decorate our homes, wear new clothes and spend time with our loved ones. The festival, in a way, also highlights the joy of giving.  This is the reason, why we exchange sweets and gifts with our neighbours and friends on Diwali.

When each one of us tries to make Diwali a memorable experience, there are some young children in India who struggle to meet their basic necessities including food and education. The Akshaya Patra Foundation, a leading NGO in India, has been trying to make a change in this picture over the past 15 years.  In fact, the organisation has grown from feeding 1500 children to nearly 15 lakh in 15 years! This year, we have cause for double celebration with both Diwali and the Akshaya Patra 15 year anniversary falling on November 11! 

A major part of Akshaya Patra’s growth and success can be attributed to the support and encouragement the organisation has received from its well-wishers.  Akshaya Patra is now working to fulfil its mission of feeding 5 million school children by 2020.

On the occasion of the Akshaya Patra 15 years anniversary, let us provide opportunities to keep our children free from hunger.  Enjoy the joy of gifting by making festival donations to this worthy cause.

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.

Akshaya Patra’s Message on World Food Day

As observed every year, the World Food Day will take place on 16 October. The vital objective is to make people aware about hunger challenges and encourage them to take action.

The theme this year is “Social protection and Agriculture”, defining the role social protection in reducing chronic food insecurity and poverty.  It aims to ensure direct access or the means to buy food.  It is also a practical alternative for stimulating agricultural production and local economy.

Many themes gained prominence each year but the entire focus is to find a way to eradicate hunger altogether. Because, it is a fundamental right to be free from hunger and the right to adequate food. The right to adequate food is realized when every man, woman and child has the access to adequate food or means for its procurement at all times.

Many NGOs and innovative companies are partaking in the attempt to counter hunger by taking responsibility of one of the various initiatives developed by the Government. The Akshaya Patra Foundation is one such NGO that implements the Mid-Day Meal Scheme across 10 states benefiting over 1.4 million children every day. By providing mid-day meal, it aims to bridge the gap of inaccessibility to wholesome meal during the growing years of underserved children. As children have to attend to school to benefit from the mid-day meal, it also incentivises children to read and learn, thereby developing them into self-sustainable citizens of the nation.

Not just government or NGOs, it is the responsibility of each individual to ensure that children who are the future of the nation have access to nutritious food every day. You can start by supporting Akshaya Patra serve millions of children in schools every day.

Fighting Malnutrition Back

It’s indeed sad to know that 42.5 percent of children in India are malnourished, means every second child is underserved. While 11% of the population is over nourished. The number of malnourished children in India is the highest across the world. Does India have less food when compared to the rest of the nations? No

It’s a paradox of abundance and diversity between the rich and poor is huge. The situation is really grave and people need to act fast. Many programmes have been initiated with the same objective of feeding every child of India. The Mid-day meal scheme by The Akshaya Patra Foundation is one amongst them.

The organisation is dedicated to fighting hunger and malnutrition in India. By implementing the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in government schools and government aided schools, Akshaya Patra aims to provide nutritious food to children as well as promote education every day.

Operating kitchens in 24 locations across 10 states in India, It caters to over 1.4 million children every day. The number is huge by all account but it still has a long way to go when India comes into the picture. There are millions of children still underserved and malnourished and without access to proper education. To see an India where classroom hunger is history and every child is well fed, healthy and smart, people intervention is of utmost importance.

The fight cannot be a one organisation’s battle. It has to a coordinated approach with proper support and funding. The programme is of course expanding successfully due to the crucial and fruitful partnership with the Government of India and various State Governments, and support people from every walk of life.

Akshaya Patra believes in eliminating classroom hunger from India and preventing malnutrition from creeping up and affecting children through its tireless effort. But, the reality can only happen when you join the cause and fight together against this social evil.

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Nutrition for Children on Nutrition Week

Today India is a one of the fastest developing economy in the world. But for the progress, it is stained by malnutrition of millions of its people especially children. India is home to 400 million children, out of which every second child is malnourished due to lack of proper nutrition. Nutritious food is essential for children’s growth and health. Food nutrition and health are connected to the core.

Classroom hunger is a serious issue in India. Hunger keeps children away from school. They cannot concentrate or analyse information when their bellies are starved of food. The solution is to provide food for children in school and ensure that they get nutrition in schools. The mid-day meal programme of the Government of India, taken up by NGOs across the country aims to food nutrition and ensuring health. The Akshaya Patra Foundation in aegis with governments provides the free, tasty and nutritious mid-day meal at government, and government aided schools.

This food for children acts as an incentive for parents to send their children to school. It combats malnutrition in children and provides access to education too. By gaining regular access to sufficient nutrition in schools, the children have shown better concentration in class and academic progress; attendance have improved as well as school enrolment and school dropout rates have decreased.

The Akshaya Patra Kitchen maintains proper quality and food safety. At every stage of the operations process quality measures are implemented to make the Akshaya Patra food safe, nutritious and tasty.

With the determined efforts of the Government of India, corporates, donors and other well-wishers, India can one day achieve a hunger free society.

This Nutrition week provides all an opportunity to donate to charity and help the children. One can make adonation this week and ensure children to get proper nutrition. Donate to ngo, Akshaya Patra which is implementing the Mid-Day Meal Programme in order to eliminate classroom hunger.

Let’s make a pledge to donate to help children get proper nutrition and education today!