The Dance of Hunger!

Posted by Akshaya Patra Posted on 2:31 PM with No comments

Do you know what it feels like to be starving? Have you felt the cramps in your stomach when it’s empty? Whether or not, you have experienced this, lakhs of children across India live this reality each day! Akshaya Patra, an NGO is striving committedly to alter this reality for these children.

When was the last time you did not receive or eat your meal on time? When was the last time you got those hunger cramps in your stomach? When was the last time you really had to go out of your way to get some food? How did you feel when your stomach was empty?

All these questions may either seem relevant to you or it may be completely irrelevant to you. But, the point is, lakhs of children across India wake up to hunger and go back to sleep in hunger! These children are living each day without the assurance of something as basic as food. At a tender age, their mind and heart revolve around the worry of ‘Will I get something to eat today?’ At a time when they should be playing, making friends, attending school, exploring and learning new things, their childhood is spent in looking for ways to quieten the hunger pangs. So, are we doing anything to liberate these children from this grim situation?

Read more: https://medium.com/@akshayapatraindia/the-dance-of-hunger-e720b9136a37

An NGO in Ahmedabad Supporting Hopes of Children

Posted by Akshaya Patra Posted on 2:24 PM with No comments

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is an Indian NGO implementing the Mid-Day Meal Scheme across 12 states of India, and Gujarat is one among them. The Foundation is headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka and made its foray into Gujarat in 2009. Since then, strategically, it has expanded its reach across five locations in the state as an NGO in Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Vadodara, Surat, and Kalol. Currently, the Foundation is providing meals to 4,07,452 children in 1,621 government schools across the state.

Akshaya Patra is providing mid-day meal in Gujarat from its five centralised kitchens located in Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Vadodara, Surat, and Kalol. Each of these kitchens strictly adheres to hygiene and cleanliness practices while preparing meals and ensure that the cooked meals are nutritious, tasty, and hygienic. And, so that children readily consume the meals, the kitchen follows a locally palatable menu.

Akshaya Patra is cognisant of the fact that in most cases food brings children to school. It is an incentive for parents to send their children to school with the hope that their children will receive at least one stomach full of meal a day. And, once children are at school, they also receive education empowering them to become resourceful and independent in the future. Thus, while providing regular mid-day meals in the existing schools, Akshaya Patra, as an NGO in Ahmedabad, also strives to extend its service to other locations of the state.
By providing mid-day meal in Gujarat, Akshaya Patra is not only supporting health and education of children but is also upholding dreams of millions of children. Here is an anecdote of one of the beneficiaries:

Mayur Kanaji Thakor, a bright student of Golvanta Primary School, Gujarat aspires to be a doctor. He comes from a family of four with his father as the sole breadwinner earning a monthly income of Rs. 6,000. But, this not-so-privileged economic background has not deterred Mayur’s determination and he is confident that he will achieve his dream. An Akshaya Patra beneficiary, Mayur’s favourite food at school is Dal-Dhokli. Read the full story of Mayur here.

There are many more such dreams and they are all waiting for a little support from you. Hence, Akshaya Patra gives you a platform to be a part of young yet determined dreams of millions of children. You can support meals and hopes of children by choosing to donate to charity. Your contribution to Akshaya Patra will be diligently used in providing wholesome meals to children thereby empowering them with health and education. Feed a child, nourish a hope!

Akshaya Patra Serving Health and Well-Being in Schools

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 2:22 PM with No comments

The major drawback in India is that children from low-income families are not entitled to proper education for lack of food. The children tend to remain hungry as their parents cannot afford them a meal. For them, a square meal is more important than acquiring education. So they accompany parents to work places. As a result, attendance has dropped down and drop-outs have increased. It is estimated that more than 50% of Indian children drop out of the schools at primary level. Unfortunately, India shares 34% percent of the world’s illiterate population.

Without education a child can never progress. Understanding the link between education and nutrition, Akshaya Patra serves unlimited food for education keeping their growth requirements in mind. The meals are delivered with proper nutrition; quality, prescribed calories and safety. Adequate supply of micro nutrients as iron, folic acid, zinc, fibre, essential fatty acids, calcium, carbohydrates, protein vitamin A are supplemented through the mid-day meals. During lunch servings; roti, rice, rice khichadi, curd rice, vegetable pulao, mixed vegetable curry, sambar, dhal, rasam etc. are served. The sambar and curries contain lots of vegetables which have essential nutrients that are required for the adequate growth of children. The rice and wheat served meets adequate standards as prescribed by The Government of India. Every meal served is warm, fresh, nutritious and ready to eat. So hunger, which is an obstacle to children’s health, education and survival are tackled by the nutritious mid-day meals.

The mid-day meal solves two of the critical United Nations Millennium Development Goals. The first is to End Poverty and Hunger and second is to achieve Universal Education. Food for education solves the obstacle of hunger that is a hindrance for education and health.

Hunger hinders a child’s learning process. Let no child miss the opportunity to attend school for the lack of food. Let us donate for the NGO so that it can reach out to more children. Let us work together to serve children and end class room hunger. It takes just Rs. 750 to feed a child for a year! Every donation of Rs. 500 or above made to Akshaya Patra is eligible for 100% tax exemption under section 35 AC or 50% tax exemption under Section 80 G of the Indian Income Tax.

Send Children Back to School

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 10:39 AM with No comments

Its back-to-school-time! Quintessential summer days of having a blast and lazing around is finally over as children gear up for their new academic year. But often, poverty and paucity of resources prevent families from sending their children for another year at school.

Source: blog.akshayapatra.org/contribute-to-send-children-back-to-school

Feed the Children to Promote Healthy Living

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 11:46 AM with No comments

Have you ever considered why children should eat healthy food? The answer is simple: childhood is one of the most important stages in life and following a proper, nutritious diet is crucial for remaining healthy later in life.

A healthy diet, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), is one which is rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and whole grains like unprocessed wheat, rice. The experts also recommend eating at least 400 grams or 5 portions of fruits and vegetables every day. A healthy diet can help improve cognitive development in children and can also protect them against malnutrition, obesity, diabetes, stroke, cancer and heart disease.

In India, millions of children lack access to a single healthy meal a day. There are NGOs all over the country that works tirelessly to combat this. One of them is The Akshaya Patra Foundation, children NGO that has been providing unlimited food for school children in India since 2000.

The NGO for Children has brought rays of hope to over a million underserved youngsters in India. Starting the journey by feeding 1,500 children in Bengaluru, Akshaya Patra at present delivers nutritious and tasty meals to over 1.4 million children from 10,845 schools in 24 locations across 10 states in India. The meals prepared by the foundation contain the vital nutrients required for growth.

To feed the children, the organisation depends on support from the Government of India, corporates and donors. People from across the world come forward to feed the children. The organisation accepts donation both in the form of money and kind. An interesting fact about Akshaya Patra is that it takes just ₹750 to sponsor a child for a whole year. An additional incentive to sponsor a child is the opportunity to save on tax. Well-wishers who contribute ₹500 or above are eligible for 100%tax exemption under section 35 AC!

Although Akshaya Patra has made great progress in the past 15 years, the Foundation’s mission is to feed 5 million children by 2020. So Sponsor a child and enjoy the joy of giving!

Experience the Other Side of Thanksgiving

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 6:28 PM with No comments

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

The long wait is finally over and it’s time to feast with your family and friends! November 26 is Thanksgiving Day, the day in a year when we stop to count the blessings in our lives and give thanks for what we have achieved so far.

Centuries have passed since a special day for Thanksgiving came on this earth and there is no doubt that the fourth Thursday in November has gained more prominence over the years. In the modern busy world, we hardly get time to socialise or spend time with family. Thanksgiving, in a way, is a day meant exclusively for enjoying delicious meals with our loved ones.

When a grand family meal is awaiting us on Thanksgiving Day, there are some children who still go to sleep in empty stomachs. The Akshaya Patra Foundation, an NGO for children in India, has been trying to provide one meal a day to children in India since 2000 so that they do not have to choose between hunger and education.

The NGO has kitchens in 24 locations across 10 states in India to prepare freshly cooked nutritious meals for school children. No wonder, in the past 15 years, over 1.4 million children across India have found their way back to school.

Here is an opportunity to experience the other side of Thanksgiving. Help provide a daily meal for school children and give them a day to thank you.

Be thankful for what you have and help those who don’t have. Donate food for Thanksgiving. Let us create a special Thanksgiving Day for kids.

Say Good Bye to Classroom Hunger and Help Bring Our Children Back to School

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 3:19 PM with No comments

Learning is fun, but only when the stomach is full. A hungry child cannot think about anything else other than food. This can affect the way a child concentrates in the class and his or her overall performance at the school.

The food issue has grown to such an extent that, these children are sometimes compelled to go for work to earn their daily bread. No wonder, India is yet to attain complete freedom from child labour, an issue which has always stood in the path of our nation’s development. However, there has been a remarkable change in this trend from the past few years. Data from the Ministry of Labour & Employment shows that in 2011, only 43.53 lakh children aged between five and 14 opted work over their school compared to the 1.26 crore children in the year 2001.

A report released by the World Bank shows that more students were going back to school from the year 2000 onwards. It was the same year when The Akshaya Patra Foundation, a Mid-Day Meal NGO was established. Only 1.4 million students missed out school in 2011 compared to 32 million in 2001.

An initiative established with a mission to end classroom hunger has succeeded in bringing some of our vulnerable children back to the school. The organisation has come a long way in attaining its mission and Akshaya Patra’s Mid-Day Meal Programme today feeds over 1.4 million underserved Government school children in 10 states, compared to 1,500 children in 2000.

Akshaya Patra has received wide support and donations from different parts of the world and the organisation hopes to feed 5 million school children by 2020.

Children are considered to be a gift from the God. It is our responsibility to protect and support the gift. Support the cause today and return our children their right to education.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is completing its 15 years of service in the society. The NGO started in the year 2000 by feeding just 1500 children. In the 15th anniversary of the organization it reached 1.4 million children. On this occasion, Akshaya Patra is contesting some fun activities. Visit celebrating 15 year.

Helping Children—A Responsibility

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 6:17 PM with No comments

There is nothing nobler than helping the ones in need. And if they are children, it is a responsibility as well as an opportunity. Children’s basics need of food and education are the most essential ingredients that will allow them to grow up strong, smart and a better citizen. In India many children are in want of help from us.

Millions of children in India are malnourished and driven to child labour and other unsavoury occupations just for a square meal when they are supposed to go to schools and get educated. The connection of food and education is natural. Both factors correspond to each other directly. To bridge gap between hunger and education the Government of India and the State Governments have developed several initiatives and programme. Amongst the programmes is the Mid-Day Meal Programme. And The Akshaya Patra Foundation is one of the many NGOs that are implementing the programme to feed children in schools.

Akshaya Patra runs the mid-day meal programme and feed children in schools every day in an effort to eliminate classroom hunger. Currently, it is providing nutritious mid-day meals to more than 1.4 million children from 24 locations in 10 stated across India. The mission of Akshaya Patra is to feed 5 million by 2020. Being an NGO, The Akshaya Patra Foundation needs support from people to keep up the programme and reach out to more children. And as it is agreed that helping children is not just a noble deed but, also our responsibility and an opportunity, expectation for support grows and we know these children will be disappointed as long as there are responsible citizens in the country.

Get Involve with the organization and help the children.

National Geographic Channel to feature Akshaya Patra in Mega Kitchens

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 11:10 AM with 1 comment

Mega Kitchens is one of the most popular series in the National Geographic Channel and The Akshaya Patra Foundation is proud to have been selected to get featured in this series. In an episode titled ‘Akshaya Patra - Shiksha Ka Mahabhog’ the Foundation’s kitchen will be telecasted on Monday, 27^th April 2015 at 9 p.m. (IST) in the NGC Mega Kitchens. It will be a documentary on how Akshaya Patra cooks millions of meals every day to feed children so that they continue coming to school and receive rightful education.

With the mid-day meal being taken care of children has the opportunity to concentrate in their academics and also excel in co-curricular activities. This series will give an inside view to Akshaya Patra’s kitchen operations and processes. Click Akshaya Patra - Shiksha Ka Mahabhog to get a sneak peek into the episode.

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Akshaya Patra uses big data analytics to plan ahead

Posted by Akshaya Patra Foundation Posted on 10:43 AM with No comments

Big data analytics (‘the process of capturing, managing and analysing huge amounts of data to generate useful information’) is crucial to every company, regardless of the industry. It helps map the growth curve of the organisation and allows it to closely align itself to its future targets and time frames.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation has utilised big data analytics in its cause of providing food for education to under nourished, underprivileged children across India. The Foundation which provides the mid-day meal to over 1.4 million children across 10,661 Government and Government-aided schools across the country on every school day has turned to big data to help it economise this processes.

Explaining how big data analytics has helped The Akshaya Patra Foundation, Vice-Chairman Chanchalapathi Dasa says, “We were taking 34 routes to deliver food to Government schools in Bangalore and each route costs us an average of Rs. 60,000 a month.” Big data analytics showed that by reducing the number of routes by five Akshaya Patra would save Rs. 300,000.

Akshaya Patra has made use of big data analytics across a range of areas from raising and allocating funds, to planning campaigns and forecasting future trends in the non-profit industry.

The organisation also used big data analytics to streamline its fundraising mediums. The results showed that using less expensive mediums such as the internet and telephone raised more funds for the Foundation.

Expanding on this Chanchalapathi Dasa says, “We have been able to increase funds obtained by liaising over the internet and telephone to 17 per cent of our total funds, up from the 4 per cent it used to account for two years ago.”

Keeping the financial constraints of NGOs in mind, the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM-B) helped Akshaya Patra plan for the most optimum food delivery routes using their data analytics lab at no cost.

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