Serve mid-day meals to children with Akshaya Patra

What did you have for lunch?

Such a simple question, yet, a powerful one. It is very normal to hear answers like idli, puri, sambar rice, dosa, etc. But what would your reaction be when you hear nothing but silence in response? Hundreds of second line of questions are bound to arise in your mind – why the silence, why aren’t you responding, didn’t you eat anything, etc. Such is the plight of millions of children in India.

To change this hunger scenario, children have to be fed.

But how?

The Mid-Day Meal Programme was started in India to feed millions and millions of hungry school-going children who hail from challenging backgrounds. One such organisation that supported Government’s Mid-Day Meal Scheme is The Akshaya Patra Foundation that provides school lunch to children on a daily basis. 

What is the history of Akshaya Patra?

It all started with a vision that "No child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger." In the year 2000, school meals were served to 1,500 children studying in five Government schools in Karnataka’s capital, Bengaluru. By providing wholesome meals, Akshaya Patra gives them the required nourishment and motivation to help them pursue their education for a better future. With support from the Government and donors alike, it feeds 1.8 million children on a daily basis. By working on a Public-Private Partnership model, it aims to feed 5 million children by 2025. 

What does a school meal contain?

School meals served by The Akshaya Patra Foundation, caters to nutritional requirements of children. A variety of nutritious, locally palatable items are included in the menu to make sure that children enjoy their meals.  This means that children in Karnataka are served Bisi Bele Bath or Sambar and Rice while children in Rajasthan are served with Dal and Poha.

How does Akshaya Patra implement the Mid-Day Meal Scheme?

To ensure maximum children benefit with mid-day meals, Akshaya Patra operates two types of kitchens:

·         Centralised Kitchens

These kitchens are located in urban and semi-urban areas that have a capacity to cook 50,000 to 1,50,000 meals every day. These large cooking facilities use automated machines to meet the operational requirement.

·         Decentralised Kitchens

These kitchens are located in areas which have difficult terrains and improper road connectivity. Here, women self-help groups (SHG) take up the cooking process. They are trained and are cook under constant vigilance of Akshaya Patra’s Process and Quality Officers.

No matter which type of kitchen serves school meals to children, hygiene and cleanliness is a top priority. You can donate to children’s school meals and help them achieve their dreams of pursuing their career to become highly responsible citizens of India. 

Your donations are a source of food for children for one whole year. They do not have to think of where their next meal will come from. 

Be liberal to uphold dreams of little children.

Donate towards their daily school meals.