Akshaya Patra’s Magnanimous Journey in Karnataka

We have served 2 billion meals. The Akshaya Patra Foundation, an NGO based out of Bengaluru, celebrated the serving of 2 billion mid-day meals, in the presence of Honourable President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee. Having been in the service of children for 16 years now, this NGO for children is here to make a difference in many young lives by crafting a healthy future for them. Thanks to the Government of India for its outpouring support towards Akshaya Patra’s Mid-Day Meal Programme, there has been a steady rise in school attendance as well.

We are only a few days close to observing National Nutrition Week and while we will be discussing what ‘Nutrition’ means to us in our future blogs, let us brief you on how our journey of Mid-Day Meal Programme has panned out in Karnataka.

After Akshaya Patra stepped forward to provide mid-day meals to school children which would later go on to become the world’s largest NGO-run school lunch programme, the Indian government and many donors from across the globe have supported the initiative in many ways possible. Since its inception in 2000, Akshaya Patra has spread its wings across 11 states in the country feeding over 1.6 million children on every school day. This NGO for children believes that every child deserves a fair chance in the field of education and therefore, decided to fight classroom hunger through school lunch programme.

Our Journey of Unlimited Food for Education

• For Akshaya Patra, the journey began in 2000 with a feeding programme for 1,500 school children in Bengaluru

• The following year, the Government made it a right for every child studying in their schools to avail mid-day meals within the school premises

• In 2003, our Foundation became the first to take public-private partnership forward in social sector with the Government of Karnataka signing an MoU for MDM for children

• We went beyond Bengaluru. In 2004, we set up kitchens in Hubballi, Mangaluru and Mysore to feed more children

• In 2007, a second centralised kitchen was set up in Bengaluru in Vasanthpura, which currently feeds 1,01,541 children

• In 2012, Akshaya Patra served the billionth meal, one of the major milestones for this children’s NGO and in 2016, we crossed serving of 2 billion meals

Today, Akshaya Patra serves more than 5 lakh children in Karnataka alone. On this exceptional journey of defeating hunger among children, we urge you to join us and witness a changing society. If today’s children are fed nutritious meals and are ensured quality education, we will be creating a secure future not just for us but also for the next generation to come.

A famous proverb tells us that ‘little by little, little becomes a lot.’ To be able to feed 5 million children by 2020, we will need your help. You can donate an amount of your choice or you can sponsor a child by donating Rs 950. If changing a life makes you a proud citizen, then Akshaya Patra’s cause is for you!

A Thought to Share on International Literacy Day

UNESCO commemorates International Literacy Day on September 8, every year. It is to bring awareness and promote the importance of education. India’s scene in term of literacy is not so desirable.

• According to a survey, India's literacy rate increases ‘lethargically’
• A 1990 study estimated that it would take until 2060 for India to achieve universal literacy
• According to the 2011 census, India had a literacy rate of 74.04 percent
• In the year 2014, the literacy rate of India increased by 10 percent

How is India looking forward to tackle the challenge?

It has to start from the root, the children. The Government of India launched ‘The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (Hindi for Total Literacy Campaign was in 2001 to ensure that all children in the 6–14-year age-group attend school and complete eight years of schooling by 2010. The Education Guarantee Scheme and Alternative and Innovative Education are two important aspects of the campaign, meant primarily for children in areas with no formal school within a one kilometre radius.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation, as an NGO runs the mid-day meal programme to provide nutritious food to the school children and promote education thus, providing substantial support to ‘Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan’. The programme has grown from feeding 1,500 children in the year 2000 to 1.4 million children in 2014. Today, this organisation feeds free mid-day meals to school children in 10,845 Government schools and Government-aided schools. The organisation currently has its presence in 24 locations across 10 states in India.

The not-for-profit organisation’s vision is—‘No child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger’. To achieve this vision, Akshaya Patra provides ‘unlimited food for education’.

The programme has brought back children to schools, increase attendance, decrease drop-out rate, and promote socialisation. All will directly impact in increasing the literacy rate amongst children in India.

How can you help?

You can be a volunteer to the NGO. You can support a child with mid-day meal for year. This activity will lead to successful implementation of the mid-day meal programme eventually resulting in children getting educated.

Donate food for education in honour of your dear ones

‘Unlimited food for education’ is the motto of The Akshaya Patra Foundation. This Foundation is an Indian NGO implementing the mid-day meal programme since 14 years. Mid-day meal scheme is a Government of India initiative to provide free school lunch to the children of Government schools. By implementing this programme Akshaya Patra aims to provide sumptuous lunch for the school children so that it will aid in eliminating classroom hunger and also bring in more and more children to school thereby furthering the cause of education too. Hence, by providing food for education this NGO is steering its efforts towards a healthy and educated generation.

Currently, Akshaya Patra is providing food for education to 1.4 million children across the states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Telangana. Covering 23 locations across these states this NGO serves 10,661 Government schools every day. While implementing the food for education programme, Akshaya Patra receives aid in the form of Government subsidies and grants, and corporate and individual donors. Realising the significance of this support, Akshaya Patra has created a platform where a supporter can choose to donate in honour of their near and dear ones. The donation can be done through online donation for charity mode or offline donation mode depending on the comfort and convenience of the donor.

When you choose to donate in honour of someone, you are not only offering your respect and gratitude to a person but also becoming an angel for many children who are denied of their basic rights to food and education. You become a catalyst of change by your contribution of offline or online donation for charity. Most often we get so busy with our daily chores that we become ignorant about our responsibilities for the society. Akshaya Patra thus always encourages and provides opportunity for you to participate in this programme through your skill, time, or financial resource. Akshaya Patra provides a platform for you through its many Get involved activities to join the mission of providing food for education to the millions of underserved children who step into the school with the hope of getting food first and then education.

Contributing donation in honour of is definitely a heart-warming decision. It provides a sense of compassion and ‘able to relate’ feel within us. We can also choose to support the mission of mid-day meal programme by opting for online donation for charity as a part of birthday celebrations, weddings, anniversaries, festivals and functions. Occasions are many; it just requires our presence of mind and willingness to participate in the progress and development of the society.

Choose to provide food for education. Uplift your humane persona by supporting to uplift the lives of the young citizens.

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A new Akshaya Patra kitchen opens at Cuttack!

 

Staying focused on its aim to keep expanding and reach out to 5 million children by 2020, The Akshaya Patra Foundation has launched its 23rd kitchen at Cuttack in Odisha. This centralised kitchen was inaugurated by Naveen Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Odisha, as well as General Surat Singh Sandhu, the Chairman of The Kusuma Foundation and Pankaj Vinayak Sharma, Country Leader of The Kusuma Foundation.

Donation process suited to your needs

Making a donation to The Akshaya Patra Foundation for the cause of food for education is a very simple process. All you need to know is how much you would like to donate, whether you are donating in cash or kind, and the reason for your donation.

Akshaya Patra opens a new kitchen at Jodhpur

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is thrilled to announce the opening of its 22nd kitchen in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. Operational since August 2013, this centralised kitchen caters to a total of 12,139 school children across 147 government and Madrasa schools.