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Akshaya Patra Foundation

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The Akshaya Patra Foundation
Founded2000
TypeNon Profit Organisation
Location
ProductsMid Day Meals
Websitehttp://www.akshayapatra.org/

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is an independent charitable trust[1] registered under the Indian Trusts Act 1882 (Reg. No. 154). Headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka, the NGO serves as the implementing partner of the Government of India’s flagship PM POSHAN Abhiyaan,[2] a school meal programme designed to improve the nutritional status of school-aged children nationwide. It was earlier known as the ‘National Programme for Mid-Day Meal in Schools’, popularly known as the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Scheme.[3]

Akshaya Patra is the largest NGO partner of the Government of India to implement the PM POSHAN Abhiyaan in government-run schools in India, a collaboration based on the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. It is also one of the largest NGO-run school feeding programmes in the world.

Since its inception, Akshaya Patra has cumulatively served over 4 billion meals[4]. The milestone serving of the 4 billionth meal was commemorated at an event held at the UN Headquarters in New York, United States.

History

Akshaya Patra was started in 2000 by feeding 1,500 children in five schools in Bengaluru, Karnataka,[5] with the vision that no child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger. The objective was to address the issue of classroom hunger and support the health and education of the children by providing them with hot, nutritious, and tasty mid-day meals.

When the Government of India’s flagship programme, the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Scheme (now known as the PM POSHAN Abhiyaan) was launched in 2001, Akshaya Patra collaborated with the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India, and state governments to implement it.[6]

Currently, Akshaya Patra feeds over 2.25 million beneficiaries in 77 locations across 16 states and 2 UTs of India.

Programmes

[edit]

Mid-Day Meal Feeding

Akshaya Patra strives to address the issue of classroom hunger and support children’s health and education by providing them nutritious mid-day meals every day. The Foundation serves over 2.25 million children through its network of kitchens in 77 locations in 16 states and 2 UTs, thus support their nutrition and education.[7]

ICDS Anganwadi Feeding

In Vadodara and Surat in Gujarat, Ongole in Andhra Pradesh and Warangal in Telangana, Akshaya Patra implements the Anganwadi feeding programme to provide food to children in the age group of 3-6 in Anganwadis and pregnant women and lactating mothers in the area. Over 54,000 children and women benefit from the programme.[8]

Breakfast Feeding

The Foundation also runs a breakfast programme to help address short-term hunger among schoolchildren and improve their concentration levels in the classroom. The programme is currently being implemented in 25 locations across five states: Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Odisha and Karnataka.

Feeding Homeless Mothers

In addition to school feeding, Akshaya Patra also runs a programme to feed homeless women living in ashrams in Vrindavan, thus ensuring their continued access to nourishing food and guaranteeing them a life of dignity and respect.[9]

Humanitarian Food Relief

In numerous instances, Akshaya Patra has leveraged its infrastructure and resources to provide humanitarian food relief during emergency situations such as floods, droughts and landslides across the country and beyond the borders. In April 2014, Akshaya Patra collaborated with Tata Trusts and Sipradian Sahayata Sanstha to set up a temporary centralised kitchen and provide food relief to people in the aftermath of the earthquake.[10]

During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Akshaya Patra extended humanitarian food relief through its network of kitchens across the country and served over 244 million meals to people when everyone was finding it difficult to source food due to the containment measures put in place to curb the pandemic outbreak.[11]

Other Programmes

Akshaya Patra also implements programmes that go beyond feeding to support children’s overall development by providing them financial aid through its scholarship programme and a conducive environment in schools through the school rejuvenation programme.

Presence

Akshaya Patra’s network of kitchens spans 16 states and 2 UTs: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Delhi, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.[12]

It has established centralised kitchens in 75 locations. The scale and operational efficiency of these kitchens help maximise the programme's impact. Akshaya Patra’s kitchens have been a subject of study for the Harvard Business School on two occasions: 2007[13] and 2017[14]. The 2007 study states “The centralised kitchen model had the benefits of scale and the best promise for being able to feed the largest number of children for the lowest cost.”

It has adopted the decentralised model in two locations—Baran, Rajasthan, and Nathdwara, Odisha. In this system, smaller kitchens catering to one or two schools are run by local women under the guidance of Akshaya Patra.

Awards & Recognitions

  1. Gandhi Peace Prize 2016 for its contribution towards the socioeconomic development of India by providing mid-day meals to millions of children across the country.[15][16]
  2. Padma Shri to Shri Madhu Pandit Dasa, Chairman of The Akshaya Patra Foundation, in recognition of the distinguished service rendered by the Foundation for the children of India.[17][18]
  3. Nikkei Asia Prize in the Economic and Business Innovation Category for supporting education by nourishing children, thus playing a pivotal role in the socioeconomic development of the region.[19]
  4. Outlook POSHAN Special Jury Award 2019 for its valuable contribution in the Urban Nutrition (Institution) category.[20]
  5. BBC Global Food Champion Award 2019 for its contribution to implementing the school feeding programme.[21]
  6. Akshaya Patra has been awarded the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) Gold Shield for Excellence in Financial Reporting on seven occasions. It has been inducted into the ICAI Hall of Fame for winning the Gold Shield for five years in a row from FY 2008-09 to FY 2012-13.[22]

References

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  1. ^ https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/akshaya-patra-improving-education-one-meal-at-a-time/
  2. ^ https://www.aninews.in/news/business/partnership-for-progress-the-akshaya-patra-foundation-and-round-table-india-unite-for-philanthropy20240328102342/
  3. ^ https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/akshaya-patras-4-billion-meals-milestone-commemorated-at-the-un/article68028936.ece
  4. ^ https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/akshaya-patras-4-billion-meals-milestone-commemorated-at-the-un/article68028936.ece
  5. ^ https://time.com/archive/6951349/in-india-the-worlds-largest-school-lunch-program/
  6. ^ https://siliconeer.com/current/prime-minister-modi-serves-akshaya-patras-3-billionth-meal/
  7. ^ https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/featurephilia/story/mid-day-meal-scheme-by-akshaya-patra-foundation-1601668-2019-09-23
  8. ^ https://www.fairobserver.com/region/central_south_asia/a-new-approach-to-fighting-child-malnutrition-in-india-54891/
  9. ^ https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/society/NGO-achieves-landmark-figure-in-serving-mid-day-meals/article13660734.ece
  10. ^ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/karnatka-ngo/akshaya-patra-serves-meals-to-quake-victims/articleshow/47780315.cms
  11. ^ https://swachhindia.ndtv.com/with-over-7-crore-meals-akshaya-patra-foundation-is-reaching-out-to-the-most-vulnerable-amid-the-covid-19-pandemic-47102/
  12. ^ https://indiaeducationdiary.in/the-akshaya-patra-foundation-serves-77-million-meals-across-india-during-this-global-pandemic-covid-19/#google_vignette
  13. ^ https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=35302
  14. ^ https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=52425
  15. ^ https://www.indiaculture.gov.in/sites/default/files/awards/GANDHI_PEACE_PRIZE_from_2015-2020_image_of_award_pics_Annexure-III_13022023.pdf
  16. ^ https://pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1560246
  17. ^ https://www.padmaawards.gov.in/padmaawards/padmaawardees
  18. ^ https://www.thehindu.com/specials/in-depth/List-of-Padma-awardees-2016/article60295148.ece
  19. ^ https://www.nikkeiasiaaward.org/pastwinners/
  20. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6xDC-kfgBI
  21. ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4svxDH03tg5yHsR7f91gsj3/the-food-chain-global-champion-award-2019-winner-akshaya-patra
  22. ^ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/the-akshaya-patra-foundation-has-been-awarded-the-gold-shield-and-hall-of-fame-by-the-icai-the-institute-of-chartered-accountants-of-india-for-excellence-in-financial-reporting-for-the-year-2012-13-under-the-category-xi-not-for-profit-sector-/articleshow/30054377.cms
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