General

When the world’s leaders met at the dawn of the new millennia, they came together with a single unifying aim: ‘[to ensure] human development reaches everyone, everywhere.” With this in mind, they adopted the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the year 2000. Designed to tackle the multifaceted problem of poverty in all its aspects, these goals are concrete, time-bound, benchmarks that provide a common framework for all countries and guide them to achieve specific targets by 2015.
There are a total of 8 goals which deal with income poverty, hunger, maternal and child mortality, disease, inadequate shelter, gender inequality, environmental degradation and the Global Partnership for Development. If these goals are met, world poverty will be halved, millions of lives will be saved and many more people will be able to benefit from the global economy.

Once established, the MDGs triggered large numbers of people across nations coming together to make these aims a reality. Many charities around the world have been consistently working for just this purpose.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation is one such non-profit charity for children. Founded in the year that the goals were adopted, it has been actively working to achieve many of the targets set by India for nearly ten years.

In particular, Akshaya Patra has been working to accomplish India’s aims to reduce the number of people suffering from hunger, ensure that children everywhere will be able to complete a full course of primary education, eliminate gender disparity and make available the benefits of new technologies in co-operation with the private sector.
Akshaya Patra’s school mid-day meal program is a unique example of what can be accomplished with the co-operative efforts of not only the Government, but corporate and individuals who really wish to bring about lasting change. Over the past ten years, the Foundation’s formula for success has resulted in the program growing from a small endeavor to a massive scale movement that reaches out to nearly 1.2 million children across India.

So what is Akshaya Patra’s formula? How is the Foundation able to do this?

“It boils down to the kindness and commitment of all the people who support us. This, along with the program we implement has been the real cause of our success.” says Madhu Pandit Dasa, the Chairman of Akshaya Patra.

This charity for children provides students in Government schools with at least one school meal per day on all school days. The meal acts as an incentive to bring children back to school, thereby encouraging education.

Studies conducted on impact by A C Nielsen ORG MARG Pvt. Ltd indicate remarkable results. Student attendance and enrolment in some places has risen by as much as 40%. The program has also increased the percentage of girl children attending school, thereby helping eliminate gender inequality. This program not only addresses the dire need for food faced by India’s malnourished millions, but also the problem of educating the country’s underprivileged children.

With many such organizations working towards accomplishing the Millennium Development Goals, the question remains as to how far we have come. There are just 5 years left till the deadline. Is the world on track to meet its goals?

According to the latest United Nations Development Program, there has already been considerable progress. The goal of halving poverty is in fact within reach.

However, it also points out the areas for concern. Many goals might be missed if action is not taken urgently. One quarter of all children in developing countries are considered to be underweight and at risk of long-term effects of undernourishment. More than half a million prospective mothers in developing countries die annually in childbirth or complications of pregnancy. In many middle income countries, there are ‘pockets of poverty’ that will need specific attention.

The world is gearing up to evaluate the progress made and the actions that need to be taken to accomplish all the goals by 2015.

“We must not fail the billions who look to the international community to fulfill the promise of the Millennium Declaration for a better world. Let us meet in September to keep the promise.”

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on world leaders to attend a summit in New York on 20-22 September 2010 to boost progress towards the MDGs.

When Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Board examination paper pattern for 10th standard for 2009-10 has been reviewed, with the ratio of marks for descriptive type questions and multiple choice questions, parents and teachers of those students studying in govt. schools across the state was anxious, let alone students on how they will cope with the new pattern. However for Gururaj kulkarni studying in GJC govt. school in peenya, Bangalore, there was no such fear because Gururaj has already undergone training in Akshaya Life skills programme in his school which was initiated by Akshaya Patra with the support of public instruction department and Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagare Palike ( BBMP) in which he learned how to face the examinations more confidently, When the SSLC results were out, Gururaj made his school proud by scoring 92.48% marks.

The program equips students with skills,values and attitudes to face the challenges and demands of everyday life. Besides the programme is also planned on the basis of WHO recommendations of 10 life skills. He attribute the success to the Akshaya Life skill programme “I am thankful for the school authorities to consider Akshaya Life skills programme, the learning’s from the programme has been so crucial, that it made all the difference to me as well as my results” Gururaj who now enrolled in a science stream wanted to pursue Mechanical engineering at IIT.

It is not just Gururaj alone who has benefited from life skills programme, Misba, from Maharani Girl’s school from Mysore showers praise and is elated with getting 548 marks. “Akshaya life skills have changed my life” remarked Misba.

This year over 160 students of class X in Akshaya Life skills (ALS ) schools have scored more than 80 percent in the SSLC exams. In the last academic year, only four students of ALS schools had achieved distinction, whereas this year there has been a sweeping increase of 34 students from ALS schools who scored distinction.

By observing the statistical data of past SSLC passed-out children, comparatively this year overall Board results has decreased to 6.66% from 2009 to 2010. Whereas, the pass-out of SSLC exam, Akshaya Life Skills school children in the year 2008 – 09 to 2009 – 10 has increased to 1.46%.

40.000 students across the state of Karnataka have been benefitted from the Akshaya Life skills programme.The program has also extended its support to a few orphanage and special homes in the state.

Kanakeshwari a teacher from Mysore govt. school who has been a strong advocate for such life skills programme in government schools feels, while academic learning is important, the motivational parameters play a very crucial role in bringing-out the best amongst these socially less privileged children. She says “It could be considered as the study skills programme conducted is one of the factors which motivated the children to upgrade their results”

The Importance of learning life skills in schools is often over looked by the government says sultan, MD of Edu media who conducts the Akshaya Life skills. Why it becomes crucial is because, life skills-based education is being adopted as a means to empower young people in challenging situations. Sultan further adds Life skills should and need to be taught in a child’s life for him or her to become a well-formed educated individual. He further states that “children learn the academics in school and the life skill helps them to apply what they have learned to their everyday life”.

Recognizing the critical importance of these skills, 164 nations committed to Education For all have included life skills as an essential learning outcome for all adolescents and young people. Today, life skills education is offered as part of the formal school curriculum in at least 70 developing countries.

The life skill model is based on WHO recommendations of 10 Life skills. Sessions are facilitated through interactive games, real life examples, role play, theatre, debate and discussions. Several pertinent issues like drugs, alcoholism. The program also helps children understand their inner potentials claims the felicitators.

Though the government spent crores of rupees in the field of education in India, on the ground this has not had the desired impact among students alleges sultan.

With the success of Akshaya Life skills having a visible impact, Shoba Karandlaje, former minister and present MLA from Yeshwanthapura constituency in Bangalore has come forward to implement the Akshaya Life skills programme in all the government schools in her constituency. She is also personally funding the same. She says the students studying in government schools have the wrong notion of feeling inferior to someone studying in a private school. “There are times when even teachers have a similar opinion about themselves.” “Programmes such as these reinforce confidence among students and help them to remain focused. It also helps in their holistic development and makes them responsible citizens”

The Akshaya Patra Foundation has its operations over 18 locations across India, each one filled with its own triumphs and trials.

Lakshmikant Dasa, the location head of Hyderabad, explains the challenges faced by Akshaya Patra in that city. Located in an industrial area, the kitchen there has always had many hurdles to overcome, one of them being the problem of retaining workers.

We have therefore come up with many incentives in order to encourage them to stay. A bonus is given at the end of every month for all the employees who did not take leave during that period of 30 days. Every Saturday, movies are played for in-house workers and care is taken to ensure that good quality and varieties of food are provided to them.

Apart from all of the above, we see to it that they are not overburdened in the course of their work and are given all the support they need to help them do their jobs in an efficient and professional manner.

Excerpts from an interview with Mr. V. Gopalratnam, VP IT and CIO Cisco India regarding Cisco’s association with Akshaya Patra.

Mr. V. Gopalratnam heads the Civic Council at Cisco India and it is under his leadership that the Cisco India community is working on social initiatives focused on strengthening communities and having a positive impact on them.

Q) How has CISCO involved/associated with Akshayapatra?

A) Cisco partners with Akshaypatra for the Global Hunger Relief campaign. The Global Hunger Relief campaign was launched in 2001 by Cisco globally. Every year since then, Cisco has united to provide donations to the world’s bes hunger relief organisations. In India, our exclusive partner is Akshaypatra. Our focus is on the Feted a Child program for government school children – run by Akshaypatra. We raise funds for them so they can continue their Mid Day Meals feeding program in government schools across Karnataka.

In this way, Cisco is indirectly having a positive impact on children’s education – as this program acts as a great incentive for under-privileged kids to attend school.

In Cisco, the Global Hunger relief campaign runs every year in months of November and December – globally, where employees and teams are encouraged to contribute toward charity. Each employee contribution is matched by Cisco Foundation as well as the John Morgridge Foundation (John Morgridge is Cisco’s Chairman of the Board Emeritus) – affectively tripling the amount of money that is contributed to the chosen charities.

Q) How long has been the association?

A) Cisco’s association with Akshaypatra has been consistent for 3 yrs, since 2007.

In the first year, Cisco employees contributed enough funds to feed 10,000 children in government schools for an entire year, in the second year we contributed toward feeding 20,000 school children and for the current year we are being able to feed 30,000 school children through Akshaypatra’s Mid Day Meals program.

Q) What kind of funding has been provided by CISCO to the organisation? As in, has CISCO helped with providing transportation/ machinery etc to the institution?

A) In 2007/08, Cisco employees contributed enough funds to feed 10,000 children in government schools for an entire year, in 2008/09 we contributed toward feeding 20,000 school children and for the current year we are being able to feed 30,000 school children through Akshaypatra’s Mid Day Meals program. Cisco’s efforts with Akshaypatra is focused on sponsoring the Feed a Child program also known as the Mid Day Meals program in government schools. In some cases, the government schools that we want to sponsor are actually identified by Cisco, but the bulk of the schools are Akshaypatra associated.

Q) What kind of programmes has CISCO and Akshayapatra jointly executed for the children?

A) Our focus is on the Feed a Child program for government school children – run by Akshaypatra, also known as the Mid Day Meals Program.

We also involve Akshaypatra in our own efforts – led by Cisco volunteers. Last year our volunteers identified 6 schools around the Cisco campus area, here in Bangalore. We conducted summer camps in these government schools, teaching basic hygiene and health related subjects. We provided mid day meals during the summer vacations when the schools were not in session – and this was done in association with Akshaypatra.

This year we will also feed school kids in government schools based in Raichur district, which is the area affected by devastating floods – in association with Akshaypatra. At this point, this project – called Project Samudaya- is a work in progress with the organization.

Q) Has CISCO helped with provide educational support to the children who come to the NGO?

A) Cisco volunteers work in the health and education areas for the underprivileged where we conducted summer camps in these government schools, teaching basic hygiene and health related subjects. We also involve Akshaypatra in these efforts – led by Cisco volunteers. Last year our volunteers identified 6 schools around the Cisco campus area, here in Bangalore. We provided mid day meals during the summer vacations when the schools were not in session – and this was done in association with Akshaypatra.

This year we will also feed school kids in government schools based in Raichur district, which is the area affected by devastating floods – in association with Akshaypatra. At this point, this project is a work in progress with the organization.

Q) What are the future plans with Akshayapatra?

A) With Akshaypatra, we hope to have a long term association. We will continue to support them as a part of Cisco’s Global Hunger Relief Program.

We are now working with Akshaypatra on a Cisco project, called Project Samudaya. These philanthropic efforts are aimed toward the flood affected areas of Northern Karnataka – specifically Raichur district. Cisco has committed $10 million toward rehabilitating 4 villages in that area. We are working with Akshaypatra to feed school kids in government schools based in Raichur district.

Q) Has CISCO collaborated with the NGO outside Karnataka?

A) Cisco has made many efforts in collaborating – through technology, and otherwise – for philanthropic reasons with NGOs and educational institutions across India.

Firstly – as an initiative of the India Civic Council, Cisco has a technology oriented program with educational institutions – the Cisco Networking Academy program – created for deserving and under privileged students. The whole technology setup has been donated by Cisco to the education institutions. The basic curriculum of this program is free of cost. It is currently being offered in 24 states and 107 tier 3 cities across India.

Next – Cisco has an MoU with the Government of Rajasthan for the Cisco Networking Academy initiative for marginalized students below the poverty line.

Next – Cisco has a technology initiative with a global NGO – One World, with presence in New Delhi. Cisco has donated a solution based on Cisco Unified Communications technology for rural areas. The service provides information to local farmers and population regarding agriculture and life-stock queries. The local population can come to the UC equipment powered centers to seek answers from subject matter experts across the country. This service is provided by One World Inc. in local languages and is currently available across 4 states in India.

Next – Cisco is actively involved with NGOs by providing technology solutions in Andhra Pradesh to the Dr. Reddy Foundation for education of marginalized children and also in Calcutta with Unnatti, an NGO involved in teaching deaf children.

Finally, our employees are associated at the local level with charities in different parts of the country- with Make a Wish Foundation for terminally ill children, New Delhi based Arya orphanage, and other local charities.

Trends show that individual giving peaks every time it’s a loved one’s birthday or anniversary in the family. This type of charity achieves multiple purposes:

1. It makes you feel good, driving home the feeling of having done the good deed for the day on your special day.

2. It goes a long way in establishing your relationship with the organization you give to. In all likelihood, you will give to the same organization the next year too. And especially, if the charity has been diligent in keeping you informed on its activities.

3. It actually helps the organization further its cause.

Recently, we had a beautiful case of giving at Akshaya Patra, which we’d like to share with you. Not only does this episode prove that such giving need not be restricted to family occasions, but it demonstrates that giving transcends all barriers.

Naveen, one of our relationship managers, got a call one morning from a potential donor who stated that there had been a breavement in the family, and they would like to make a donation in the name of the deceased one.

As is often the case, Naveen expected that an aged family member had passed away, and the family would perhaps want to feed a few hundred children on an auspicious date. “I was happy to know that he will be supporting our cause, so I went to his home, prepared to explain our vision, mission, our work, and so on,” says Navin. Of course, he was to receive a big surprise when the donor mentioned that they had recently lost their beloved pet – a cat named ‘Prince’ – and that they would like to make a donation in the name of Prince!

Of course, Naveen being the good relationship manager, accepted the amount and presented the receipt to ‘Late Prince’ for an amount that would feed one child for a year.

As a first, this certainly left us surprised! But not before it had also made us wiser on the fact that giving doesn’t really need a reason or a person to be involved… in fact you can give whenever you feel like and as many times as possible.

Thank you Prince for proving this to us!

Disaster always calls for urgent measures. At times like this the country stands up to support those stricken by the tragedy and often support pours in from all corners. On the other hand, this is also a time, when people want to help but don’t know how or where to contribute and help. A fair section of those who give at this time end up getting disappointed, as they never hear about what happened to their money. That’s where organizations like ours step in to make a difference.

Akshaya Patra has been swift to respond to the need of the hour, helping victims of unfortunate tragedies. The recent example is of the floods in the Bellary district. Between 29 September-1 October 2009, Bellary district experienced heavy rains, which damaged agricultural fields, flooded the region, destroyed houses, and resulted in loss of life. The distriction administration reached out to Akshaya Patra on 2 October 2009, asking us to supply food for 10,000 people in the flood-affected areas of Bellary and Shirguppa Taluka.

While we geared up to meet the challenge in our kitchens, we knew that access to the people affected would not be easy! The villages were badly affected and the condition of the roads made the interiors inaccessible. However we rose to the challenge and began preparing the food immediately. We carried it to the concerned locations and were delivering it till 11 p.m. on the same day.

In the meantime, we had had further requests to from the Government of Karnataka to make 5000 food packets each for Mantralayam (AP State), where pepople from Karnataka were trapped in the different guest rooms, struggling for life and food; and for Shiraguppa Taluka. These food packets were taken from the Jindal Airport and loaded in the three Indian Airforce helicopters, which took them forward for distribution.

Akshaya Patra continued to feed the people of the flood-affected areas for three days, serving lemon rice or vegetable pulao for lunch and rice, sambhar, and yogurt in the evenings. Our regular school meal vehicles were used for this operation. On 4 October, we distributed another 20,000 food packets through the Indian Air force and Army helicopters to the neighboring districts of Bagalkot, Bijapur, and the Shiragoppa Taluka, in all sending 42,000 food packets.

Standing up for the nation and our people, makes us reflect on the all-important purpose for our existence. We work hard to ensure that children across India, don’t lose out on education because of hunger. Our robust systems and technology has enabled us to feed over a million children everyday. Standing for the spirit of upliftment of society, we are honored to have been the chosen partners for the food distribution activity during this disaster. Our kitchens, cooks, drivers, and all our staff members rose to the occasion, meeting the extra food demand for food, with courage in their hearts and one determination – to get the vessel of Akshaya Patra to supply “unlimited food” to those affected!

If you would like to support Akshaya Patra’s endeavors, please visit our website today.

As the UN states, more than 1 billion people in the world are hungry and malnourished, with roughly 146 million children in developing countries being underweight. Of these, 1 in every 3 malnourished children, in the world lives in India. They could find their way out of this crippling cycle of poverty through education but chances are that by the time they grow up, they will have completed only 4.5 years of schooling. That’s hardly enough to attain the most basic literacy skills, let alone find a respectable, well paying job. Even an optimist would call this a half empty glass: one section of the world lives on in luxury while another scrapes by with barely enough food to stay healthy. What can any one person do anyway? The problem is too complex.

Monica Sadhu, one of Akshaya Patra’s most enthusiastic volunteers begs to differ. After hearing about the Foundation at a music concert she was inspired to volunteer. She got herself introduced, visited the schools, learned more about our work and then did something very few of us bother to do. She tried to make a difference. Monica was only in 8th Standard when she started to volunteer for Akshaya Patra. “The children inspired me. They didn’t have a single ounce of shyness in them,” she says. Many people would be inspired too. They may even talk about it with their friends. Then they would go about their life and by the end of the day, forget to be inspired .

Monica, however, remembered, and resolved to do something. “ She began very simply, one step at a time, “In the initial stages, I focused primarily on spreading awareness…I told everyone I knew about the organization.” By the end of her 9th however, she realized she wanted to do more, “I had to do much, much more to make a significant difference to AP [Akshaya Patra] and the children it feeds everyday…I understood the need to spread awareness.” So she asked her friends to involve their schools and increased her efforts in the community. When she visited schools, she realized many of the children needed basic education in health care, so with the help of her friend’s mother, a doctor, she has planned a series of lessons for students. Starting this September 2010, she will start giving talks to these children on good hygiene.

Now in 11th Standard, Monica has spent close to 2 years volunteering for the organization and is as enthusiastic as ever. From facing skeptics who doubted anything could be done to help children in India, to finding ways of making difference in any way she could, Monica has worked enthusiastically to stand up and do something when others would merely stand by and criticize. Her volunteering experience has given her a new perspective of the world we live in, “Though I was aware of the problems poor families face, I began to see them in real life. I understood that education is the only means by which India can be freed from the terrible cycles of poverty and hunger.”

So even though the glass seems half empty and skeptics will always tch tch and say nothing can be done, change is still possible. Here is an example of the just how much one person can do if they really put their mind to it.

Baran– a remote corner of Rajasthan- where the people are denied of even the basic amenities of life, Akshaya Patra reaches out to 20,200 underprivileged children with the nutritious unlimited food through their decentralized kitchen. You must be wondering what this decentralized kitchen is.

Decentralized kitchens are those kitchens of Akshaya Patra where the operations are carried out manually involving the local population of the vicinity. Thus the Akshaya Patra not only feeds the children there but also provides employment opportunities to the women folk of that region.

They form a self help group of women who cooks the meal for their own children who goes to the school and in turn earn financial self sufficiency.

 What can be more tasty and nutritious than the food cooked by our mothers? 

Fortis Investments, an autonomous investment management company has recently joined The Akshayapatra Foundation bandwagon. The management has adopted 229 children in Bangalore from 3 schools where Akshaya Patra’s midday meal programme is practiced.

Mr. Nikhil Johri, the Managing Director of Fortis Investments have gone ahead and set an example to his employees by adopting 178 children from the Government Upper Primary School in Jaipur, who are also fed by Akshaya Patra.

The 229 children adopted by the management study in 3 schools in Bangalore – Government Higher Primary School, Government Urdu Primary School and Government Tamil Primary School in Vasanth nagar.

“I have known Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa and the Akshaya Patra Foundation for the past eight years and seen him build the program from a humble beginning of feeding 1500 children in government schools coming from underprivileged families to its present staggering size and scale of feeding 973,000 children every day in 14 locations in India!!

I have had the opportunity of closely observing the program from the very early days when I too served on the Advisory Board of Akshaya Patra for a couple of year. Sri Madhu Pandit Dasathrough the Akshaya Patra model has revolutionized the concept of cooked mid- day mealprograms that has in a sense, affected the policy and methodology of conduct of mid-day meal programs in the entire county. He started Akshaya Patra cooked mid-day meal program in Bangalore in June 2000, when the program of the state government was only distributing dry rations of 3 kgs of rice per child per month. He introduced sumptuous cooked meal program and it was highly appreciated by the children and schools teachers. The impact was quickly visible children who were enrolled in schools but were not attending started showing up in the schools lured by the hot meals.

Teachers reported that the children’s attention and interest level in the class rooms had improved. The second important contribution of Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa is his design of the mechanized kitchen model. Being an engineer himself, he immediately used industrial design principles of building the kitchens. He used industrial steam boilers, large stainless steel cauldrons for cooking rice and soup, use of conveyor systems to handle cooked materials, custom-designed vehicle to transport food in hot condition, etc. These kitchens were designed to cook native Indian meals that children are naturally used to.

As Akshaya Patra has expanded to different locations in India, the kitchens have been designed to cook different menus of different parts of India which has increased the acceptability of the meal. The significant contribution of the Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa is to carry out this program on a grand scale, as scale is critical in a country like India. The initial designed he planned was to feed 30,000 children! Eight years back it was unimaginable!! The biggest canteens of the Indian Army cooked about 5000 meals at a time.

Now Akshaya Patra kitchens have evolved ever more in their design and innovation and they are usually designed and built to cook about 100,000 meals and more. Such large scale cooking also brought the advantages of the economy of scale and brought down the cost of meal. Today Akshaya Patra has a readily replicable standardized model to cook 100,000 meals and more. The fourth important contribution of Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa is his confidence and organizing ability to take on such large projects of feeding and sustaining it with continuous financial support. When he started feeding 30,000 children in November 2000, there was no support from the government. He has the confidence to go to people and tell them about the importance of feeding children and raise money.

Today the Foundation receives partial support from the government for running expenditure. Nevertheless the Foundation has to raise money to meet the balance of the cost of meal and capital expenditure to set up the large industrial kitchens. For instance when to arrange at least Rs. 2 million (US$41,000) per schools working day (over and above the subsides given by the government) from private donors! Yet another contribution of the Akshaya Patra Foundation is that it has demonstrated how an NGO can function and operate on large scale in multiple locations like for profit enterprises to do. This is an inspiration for other NGO’s and development workers too that development work can be conceived and executed on such a large scale.

During the years 2001-03, we conducted a three year impact assessment study of the mid- day meal provided by Akshaya Patra on nutritional status, schools health and classroom performance of students. The results showed a positive improvement on all these parameters as well as attendance.

Today Akshaya Patra has become a case study of Harvard Business School and regularly discussed by professionals and analyzed by B-schools students and faculty as a model of operational management. Supply chain and logistics management.

Food safety systems management, marketing and communications in a development sector, corporate governance for non-profits and so on. We wish a very bright future for Akshaya Patra and Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa’s team.”