One of the pioneer mid-day meal NGOs, it has been a relentless effort of The Akshaya Patra Foundation to benefit more and more children with the Mid-Day Meal Programme. Recently, the Foundation inaugurated its 59th and 60th kitchen in Gadarpur, Uttarakhand and Lawspet, Puducherry.

The Akshaya Patra Foundation, a midday meal NGO has been nourishing school children with nutritious meals for the past 21 years. It has been their constant endeavour to benefit more and more children with this programme. Until 2021, Akshaya Patra had a beneficiary base of 18,00,907 children across 19,039 government schools and government-aided schools across 58 locations of 13 States and 1 Union Territory.

Stepping forward as a midday meal NGO with the vision, “No child in India shall be deprived of education because of hunger” and a defined mission, “To feed 5 million children by 2025”, Akshaya Patra recently expanded its reach to two new regions – Gadarpur in Uttarakhand and Lawspet in Puducherry. While both the kitchens will follow suit similar to any other centralized kitchen of Akshaya Patra with regards to adherence to highest standards of hygiene, food safety and quality, the specifics of each kitchen are as follows:

• Gadarpur Kitchen in Uttarakhand

Inauguration: On 1 January 2022, Shri Arvind Pandey – Honourable Minister of School Education, Government of Uttarakhand inaugurated the Gadarpur Kitchen. The other prominent guests at the event were Shri Balraj Pasi, Honourable Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha and delegates of Concentrix. On behalf of the Foundation, Shri Chanchalapathi Dasa, Vice-Chairman, Akshaya Patra; Shri G Raghuram, Principal Academic Advisor, National Rail and Transport, Trustee of Akshaya Patra Foundation; and Shri Bharatarshabha Dasa, National President, Trustee of Akshaya Patra were present at the event.

About the Kitchen: The Gadarpur Kitchen is the 59th kitchen of Akshaya Patra and the first of its kind in Uttarakhand. This centralized kitchen is sponsored by Concentrix with a built-up area of 7,000 sq. ft.

Feeding capacity and menu: The kitchen is equipped to prepare 15,000 meals. However, it will start by serving about 10,000 children in 100 Government schools and eventually increase its reach. Continuing with the practice to feed the children with locally palatable meals, the menu of Gadarpur Kitchen will be cyclic and include roti, rice, mix dal, aloo matar, rajma, veg pulao, kabuli chana, khichdi and kheer.

Way forward: In the near future, Akshaya Patra aims to set up kitchens in five cities of Uttarakhand – Dehradun, Rudrapur, Kashipur, Sitarganj and Haridwar. This will benefit approximately 2.2 lakh children in the state.

• Puducherry Kitchen

Inauguration: On 5 January 2022, Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan – Honourable Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry and Shri N. Rangasamy – Honourable Chief Minister inaugurated Akshaya Patra’s Puducherry Kitchen in Lawspet. The other prominent guests at the event were Shri R. Selvam – Honourable Speaker, Puducherry Legislative Assembly; Shri A. Namassivayam – Honourable Minister, Home and Education; Shri K. Lakshminarayanan – Honourable Minister, PWD; Shri A.K. Sai J. Saravanan Kumar – Honourable Minister, Civil Supplies; Shri V. Vaithilingam – MP (Lok Sabha); Shri S. Selvaganapathy – MP (Rajya Sabha); Shri P.M.L. Kalyanasundaram – MLA, Kalapet; Shri M. Vaithianathan, MLA – Lawspet; Shri Ramakant Agarwal – General Manager, The New India Assurance Co. Ltd.; and Smt. Jayashri Prabhu, Senior Manager, General Insurance Corporation of India. The event was presided by Shri Chanchalapathi Dasa, Vice-Chairman, Akshaya Patra.

About the Kitchen: The Puducherry Kitchen is the 60th kitchen of Akshaya Patra and the first in Puducherry. This centralized kitchen is supported by The New India Assurance Co. Ltd. and General Insurance Corporation of India. It has a fleet of 20 vehicles to deliver meals to schools.

Feeding capacity and menu: The kitchen is equipped to serve 50,800 children in 291 Government schools. It will feed the children with locally palatable meals that will include rice and seasonal vegetable poriyal, vegetable pulav, sweet pongal, sambar, sundal, curd, etc.

To sustain the current operations across India and to further expand its reach, Akshaya Patra requires support from all sections of the society – government, civic authorities, CSR partners, as well as individual donors. Be a part of Akshaya Patra’s impactful journey. Donate generously to feed the children.

Adequate nutrition is vital for growth and development in children, especially during the early years of life. An NGO in India, dedicated to providing nutritious mid-day meals to children across the country, Akshaya Patra also provides nutritious meals in Anganwadi centres. At present, the NGO serves 1,39,272 beneficiaries in 6,251 centres across 10 locations of four states.

Anganwadis are care centres for children aged 0 to 6 years old, pregnant women, and lactating mothers belonging to socio-economically challenging backgrounds. These centres are a part of Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme. Anganwadis implement the health, nutrition, and early education programmes of ICDS. Focussing on nutrition, Anganwadis provide support to improve the nutritional status and health of children aged 6 years and below. It also works towards educating mothers about nutrition and health thereby enabling them to provide better care for their children. Along with caring for children, Anganwadi centres also provide healthcare and nutritional support to pregnant women and lactating mothers.

In an endeavour to support the efforts of Anganwadi centres, the 21-year-old NGO in India, The Akshaya Patra Foundation stepped in to provide nutritious meals to the beneficiaries of these centres. Akshaya Patra is one of the most reputed mid-day meal NGOs in the country with a beneficiary base of 18,00,907 children in 19,039 government schools and government-aided schools located across 13 States and 1 Union Territory. Having been a provider of mid-day meals to children, Akshaya Patra is well-aware of the significance of adequate nutrition in growth and development of children. Hence, by initiating the Anganwadi Programme, the NGO aimed to feed the children and women in Anganwadi centres with nutritious meals daily.

Significance of Anganwadi Feeding Programme
Nutrition is of utmost importance during the initial years of children. It directly impacts overall health and growth in children along with supporting attainment of developmental milestones during the first six years of life. To ensure the beneficiaries receive the required quantity of nutrients every day, Akshaya Patra follows a cyclic and locally palatable Anganwadi food menu. This results in inclusion of a variety of nutritious food items, taste, and ready consumption of the served meals by the beneficiaries as well as prevents monotony.

The Anganwadi Programme is a great boon to children.

• It provides adequate nutrition.
• It supports age-appropriate physical growth and cognitive development.
• It supports health and increases immunity.
• It addresses malnutrition and related health concerns.
• It reduces mortality and morbidity rates.

Impact so far
Currently, 1,39,272 beneficiaries in 6,251 Anganwadi centres are benefitting from Akshaya Patra’s freshly prepared, nutritious Anganwadi food menu. Of these, 1,35,612 are children in the age group of 3-6 years in 5,928 Anganwadi centres across 10 locations of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana; and 3,660 are pregnant women and lactating mothers across 323 centres in Jaipur, Rajasthan.

As an NGO in India, Akshaya Patra is continuously striving to expand its programme to feed the children and women in more Anganwadi centres across the country.

Your support is essential
Anganwadi Programme is a crucial intervention to make sure each child receives a healthy start in life. Contribute generously to feed the children and women during the most crucial years of their lives. Your support will indeed make a big difference.