Sep 27 2019

Feeding initiatives implemented by Akshaya Patra in India

Food first, everything else comes later! We all will agree to this.

Food is the basic necessity of any living thing, and so is true for humans too! We all have experienced hunger at some point or the other. We have also experienced the repercussions of staying hungry – low energy, tiredness, inability to concentrate or focus, unproductive, and health issues such as headache, gastric, acidity and so on. And these are the conditions we may undergo for missing out may be a meal or two. Then, imagine those who go hungry every single day! Yes, hunger is a much bigger problem than we can comprehend.

The cause of hunger varies ranging from socio-economic backgrounds to natural or man-made disasters. To tackle this situation, world organisations, governments of countries, and non-governmental organisations have intervened at various levels. Yet, hunger remains a persistent problem. Amidst all the strides made around the world, The Akshaya Patra Foundation, a non-governmental organisation in India is also making efforts to combat hunger among children and disaster-hit survivors.

Akshaya Patra implements the Mid-Day Meal Programme in partnership with the Government of India. Established in 2000, it is one of the oldest mid-day meal NGOs in the country. Through this programme, Akshaya Patra provides free school lunch to children studying in Government schools and Government-aided schools. Presently, the NGO feeds 1,765,436 children in 16,785 schools situated in 49 locations of 12 States and 1 Union Territory namely Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Silvassa, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, and Uttar Pradesh.

Aside from the Mid-Day Meal Programme, this charitable trust in India also provides nutritious food in Anganwadi centres and has been a part of several disaster relief operations within and beyond the Indian boundaries.

Together, we can battle the hunger crisis and defeat it too. Support non-governmental organisations in India like Akshaya Patra because these organisations not only fill hungry stomachs but also nurture children right from the beginning. They also extend a helping hand to disaster-affected people during the hour of crisis. When you support to feed the children or contribute towards disaster relief feeding, you truly uphold the spirit of humanity.

Everyone has equal right to food.

So, take a step to support those who lack the means to access it.

Aug 28 2019

Sponsor A Child For One Year Through Akshaya Patra

Rs. 1,100 – what can it get you – a shirt, dinner for two, a pair of shoes, grocery for a week, a movie ticket at a multiplex… or have we forgotten the value of a 1000-rupee note as demonetization marked its exit? Well, this humble amount of money has much more to it than meets the eye!

Indu has been abandoned by her father after the demise of her mother. She is taken care of by her grandmother who does small tailoring jobs to make the ends meet. While the grandmother was juggling the possibilities of providing education to Indu, her neighbour suggested a nearby school which provided free school meals too. Indu’s grandmother thought no further and got little Indu enrolled in the school immediately. Today, Indu is a Standard VI student. She dearly values her grandmother’s care and understands the struggles she has been through in taking care of Indu. Indu says, “I aim to become a doctor to ‘cure my grandmother’. I see her coughing all day round, increasing at night. When I rub her back to comfort, she says, ‘until My Little Doctor is with me, nothing can harm me.’ The high cost of health care keeps my grandmother away from a check-up. By becoming a doctor, I want to cure my grandmother and provide free treatment to other people as well.”

This is just one story among 17,65,597 children – the beneficiaries of The Akshaya Patra Foundation, a mid-day meal NGO that provides free school meals, on each school day.

What’s the role of Rs. 1,100?

Rs. 1,100 = Health + Education + Confidence + Power to realise aspirations.

Yes, when you sponsor a child through Akshaya Patra by donating Rs. 1,100, you essentially provide a child with nutritious and sumptuous school meals for an entire year. And these meals ensure their good health and regular schooling. So, when you do the math, it indicates that your contribution of Rs. 1,100 is preparing a child to be an empowered and resourceful citizen in the near future. Now, imagine if you keep adding this humble denomination, how many assets you would be creating for the nation. In essence, there lies the answer to the significant role of Rs. 1,100!

How to support Akshaya Patra?

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is one of the pioneer NGOs in the mid-day meal sector. It has a remarkable history of 18+ years of serving children with wholesome school meals. The Foundation that started off with feeding just 1,500 children in five schools, today feeds 17,65,597 children in 15,668 schools situated across 45 locations in 12 states of India. Akshaya Patra humbly dedicates this progress to the unceasing support of the Central Government and various State Governments along with thousands of philanthropic supporters who generously donate for children.

You can support this NGO through online donation and also by creating campaigns to conduct online fundraising. So, take a step to unleash the power of Rs. 1,100 because it can ensure no child in India is be deprived of education because of hunger – a vision that steers all the efforts of Akshaya Patra.

Mar 26 2018

Do items in your shopping basket add up to Rs. 95?

“Your total bill amount is Rs. 3,542”, said the cashier as he handed over the bill to me.
I took out my wallet, paid him the amount. And, as he was packing the items in a bag, I wondered ‘has my needs increased, am I buying impulsively, or has the prices of the commodities skyrocketed.’

Graphically speaking, I fail to understand how my grocery bill constantly shows an upward trend every month. I don’t remember when was the last time somebody handed me a bill of below Rs. 1,000. It does bother me, but again with the usual humdrum and busy schedule, I forget about it until the next shopping. And, then came the moment of truth when on a regular day at work, I saw my colleague donating to an NGO named The Akshaya Patra Foundation. After she finished her transaction, I enquired about the NGO. Her reply completely left me amazed.

She said, “Akshaya Patra is an NGO for children that provide food to government school children on every school day. The NGO has been operating the school meal programme for the past 17 years. It has a pan-India presence and presently serves school lunch to more than 1.6 million children.” At this, I stopped her and said that it must be a really expensive affair because grocery for one household itself costs somewhere between Rs. 2,500 – Rs. 3,000. My colleague smiled and said, “Akshaya Patra feeds 3 children for an entire year with Rs. 2,850.” And, she pointed towards the donation page of the NGO. I was totally stumped at what I had just heard and what I was seeing on the screen.

She added, “Though I am in a situation where I can afford food, I know how the hunger pangs feel. On the days when I have to skip my breakfast and rush to office, or skip my lunch to complete a report, my body and mind give up. It becomes very difficult to remain focussed on what I am doing. Well then, what about those children who aren’t even sure of getting their next meal. This particular fact drew me to support Akshaya Patra’s cause because their effort ensures at least one nutritious meal per day. That’s why on every special occasion like my birthday, my parents anniversary or during festivals I make online donations for NGO.”

And, before I could process all that she was saying, my colleague scrolled down the page and said, “When you donate to Akshaya Patra, you also become eligible for 80G deduction on your donated amount. This means the amount you donate becomes eligible for tax exemption, a benefit that you can utilise at the time of income tax filing.”

That evening, to find answers to the innumerable questions popping in my head, I read up on the humongous task that Akshaya Patra is doing. In the end, I realised that maybe I can never bring down my grocery bill, but I sure can ensure nutritious meals for children for an entire year with an amount less than my monthly grocery expense. And convinced with Akshaya Patra’s endeavour, I took my first ever step towards contributing charity!

Dec 29 2017

NGO in Rajasthan Feeds a Child with Rs 950 for an Entire Year

The sum of Rs 950 has a different a meaning for every person. For a few it’s the amount with which they can buy their favourite outfit or go to their liked place for dinner. But for many children, it is a source of hope, a hope that they will be able to relish a nutritious and delicious food for the entire year.

Though it sounds difficult, The Akshaya Patra Foundation has been making it possible for over 1.6 million children. The food served is prepared according to the guidelines set by the Government. The food is nutritious and delicious at the same time. While the food gives them the freedom to choose education over work, it also gives them the ability to make their decisions and aspire to pursue a career of their choice. By choosing education over work, they also get enough time to participate in sports activities and other activities of their choice.

Akshaya Patra is among the major NGOs in Rajasthan and it ensuring good health for all its beneficiaries. The menu varies every day so as to ensure that the children don’t lose interest in food. To gain the best out of seasonal vegetables, the dishes are changed depending on the seasons.

The Foundation will soon be launching its fifth kitchen in Ajmer. The existing four kitchens are located in Jaipur, Baran, Nathdwara and Jodhpur. About 1,70,723 children from 2,672 schools are currently benefiting from the initiative across the state.

Your contribution of just Rs 950 can ensure that the children are able to relish a wholesome meal served by the Foundation on every school day. They will be encouraged to prioritise studies over work. With a full stomach meal, they will be able to concentrate on studies. This will in turn lead the country towards positive development.

Do your bit by donating to charity today.

Dec 21 2015

Spread Awareness with Our Banners

We need your support – stand with us, raise awareness about our programme and help us get more community support.

It’s very simple: download our material and use it to support the noble cause!

How to get the material: You can download our posters directly from the website or can access our ads from other public websites.

In our website, we have displayed a variety of banners for you. Each Akshaya Patra banner has a different message to convey and also differs in design. Hand out the material to people in your area or display it in your locality.

It’s your choice! Pick a banner and support our NGO. Your initiative can help us to feed a child.

Aug 1 2015

Akshaya Patra applies technology to run the mid-day meal programme

There are several advancements in technology that has indeed made our lives easy but how much of these development can benefit society from a three sixty degree view. Technology has indeed made impactful interventions but are we able to harness enough to benefit all?

Talking about mid-day meal we can have a distinct view on its applications and benefits. The Mid-Day Meal Scheme is one of the largest free school lunch programme initiated by the Government of India. It is to ensure that children receive nutritious meals and can concentrate on studies rather than on earning a square meal. It is to tackle classroom hunger and promote education. In order to implement this, there are kitchens across the country to run the programme. As these kitchens have to cater to thousands and millions of children every day, they are categorised as centralised kitchens and decentralised kitchens. Centralised kitchens are mechanised kitchens equipped for mass production of mid-day meal and they also act as nodal kitchen for a set of schools in a particular region. This model of kitchens is viable and largely seen in urban areas.

Signs of technological intervention are a sure sight in all the kitchens of The Akshaya Patra Foundation. A walk into any kitchen unit of the Foundation will give a well maintained factory-like feel. A closer look will reveal that it is a kitchen that bustles up every morning to prepare thousands and millions of meal. Right from huge rice cauldrons beginning with 500 litres cooking capacity and dal cauldrons with capacity of 1,200 litres to 3,000 litres of dal, there are mechanised roti making machines that can roll out 200,000 rotis from 6,000 kilograms of wheat flour. Not just for cooking, Akshaya Patra also utilises technology in storage and delivery process. There are cold storages in each kitchen to store ready-to-cook cut vegetables to retain freshness. For delivering the cooked food, the NGO makes use of custom-made insulated vehicles to control temperature loss so that freshness of the cooked meal remains intact till it is served to the children. In order to ensure safety and on-time delivery, methods like logistic charting for route optimization and GPRS are adopted and implemented in the kitchens.

There many more applications of technology that have helped in continuous increase of productivity, enhanced quality and improved service. These interventions have also potentially affected sustainability of each kitchen allowing the Foundation to increase its beneficiary base. Yet, Akshaya Patra continues to explore newer avenues to further advance its capacity of feeding millions of children and move forward in eradicating classroom hunger.

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May 18 2011

The Akshaya Patra Foundation Photo Gallery

Birth of The Akshaya Patra Foundation

The history of our Foundation starts with a story of compassion.

Looking out of a window one day in Mayapur, a village near Calcutta, His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada saw a group of children fighting with street dogs over scraps of food. From this simple, yet heart breaking incident, came the determination that: No one within a ten mile radius of our center should go hungry.

It is his inspiration which helped us to create The Akshaya Patra Foundation as it is today.

We began this initiative with the vision that “No child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger.”

In June 2000, we started our mid-day meal program in Bangalore by feeding 1500 children in 5 schools. At that time there was no State run school meal program in Karnataka. Within a few short weeks we had received hundreds of requests from teachers who expressed the dire need of such a scheme.

This over whelming response was the impetus for the growth of The Akshaya Patra Foundation.

Growth of The Akshaya Patra Foundation

In November 28, 2001 the Supreme Court of India passed an order which mandated that: “Cooked mid-day meal is to be provided in all the government and government-aided primary schools in all the states.” Akshaya Patra was called in to give testimonies to the Supreme Court in order to implement the mandate.

By the time the Ministry of Human Resource Development (Department of School Health and Education) extended its support to this noble cause in 2003, Akshaya Patra was already reaching out to 23,000 underprivileged children through the support of our donors.

With the partnership of the Government of India & various State governments, as well as the generosity of thousands of our supporters, we have grown from a small endeavor to a mammoth force that stretches across the country.

Now we are reaching out to 1.2 million children everyday.

For 10 years, we have been an international charity for children that has worked to transform a vision into a reality.

We will continue to do so…