I live in modern times like today, where we have everything at the tip of our fingers – groceries, medicines, essentials, services and even food, there are still millions of people and children like me who are less fortunate than us, who do not get even a single meal a day.
Did you know? In India alone, 68.8% of the Indian population lives on less than ₹150 a day.
I live with my grandparents and I haven’t seen my parents in a long time now. Without a proper earning member of the family, what can a 10-year-old child do? Well, I cannot do anything, so I depend a lot on my grandparents for every little thing.
Even for food.
Though I get mid-day meals at school, I still have to depend on the food available at my grandparents’ house. Sometimes when there is no food to eat at home, I get bad cramps in my stomach. When I complain to Ajji (grandmother), she gives me a small banana.
Can a banana satiate hunger?
Well, for people who have had a sumptuous meal, yes, a banana can be sufficient; it is an addition to the meals one eats. But for a hungry child whose last wholesome meal was 24 hours ago, a banana is not even close to filling their stomach.
Nutritional requirements of a child
A child requires calories, nutrients, minerals, fats, carbohydrates, etc. for healthy development. Depending on the age of the child, these requirements vary. For example, a child who is between 2-3 years may not need the same amount of proteins or sugar when compared to a nine-year-old child.
| Primary Level | Upper Primary Level | |
| 450 | Calories | 700 |
| 12g | Proteins | 20g |
To meet these nutritional requirements, the Government of India has mandated under the Supreme Court’s order that every schoolchild studying in Government and Government-aided schools will receive free meals under the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Programme. NITI Aayog has identified certain districts of India with high level of malnutrition. To nourish children from these districts, towns/cities and states, The Akshaya Patra Foundation provides mid day meals to school children when you donate online.
Akshaya Patra is an NGO in India that provides free meals to children to help them have a bright future.
Wondering how?
Going back, the beginning of this blog is Sujita’s story. She is one example of what meals can do to a child – it is a gift of smile. If it was not for MDM food in her school, her childhood would probably be risked or affected by trying to help with her grandparents’ income.
What happens when a child remains hungry?
It is a vicious circle of hunger, poverty, low performance and the list goes on and it is a cyclic process.
Affects their health
When a child is not fed nutritious meals, there is a drastic drop in their physical appearance – they start looking frail and lean. India’s 61 million children don’t have access to sufficient food. (Source)
No education
UNICEF says that close to 25% of children in India do not have access to education. If a child remains on a hungry stomach, concentrating on what is being taught in class is almost impossible, because they will only concentrate on their hungry stomachs.
Child labour
Indian law prohibits a child below 14 years of age from working for wages. For helping their families’ financial situations, these children look for different ways to make quick money so that they can help the family to buy the bare necessities of life.
It is an unending cycle that begins with undernourishment. And to break this cycle, it is all the more important to feed children so that they grow to become healthy adults who can get better employment opportunities, marry at the right age and eat healthy to give birth to a healthy new generation of children.
As a concerned being who is worried about the future of the next generation, it comes very naturally to support the future leaders in any way possible – either by donating to an NGO in India that feeds mid-day meals like Akshaya Patra or by enrolling them to a school that is a beneficiary of Akshaya Patra.
In conclusion
Children do struggle without food every day.
School meals do help them by satiating their hunger on a daily basis. However, we have to ensure that this is a continual process till they pass out after completing 10th standard. Donate online to give a brighter future that is filled with optimism and hope that I will get nutritious meals even tomorrow.
The Akshaya Patra Foundation 