How did we spend most of our time in our childhood? We played, we sang, we explored, learned new things, asked questions… But above all this, there was one thing we did as children— go to school. School was a place that we developed a kind of special bond with. We loved it for all the fun things we did there while also dreading exam time! But we loved every single day of school because that was the place where we made lots of friends and learned a sport or two, recited interesting poems, pulled pranks on friends and so on. Every day was a new beginning. A majority of us would agree when asked if, given a chance, we would like to go back to school now. We were gifted with knowledge and spirit in the form of school days while growing up. But the story is a world apart in the life of many children across the globe.

Approximately 72 million children in the world do not get the chance to go to school. Ever. Owing to various factors like inadequate financial conditions, unemployment, lack of education and illness of parents, children are preferred to work during the day. In India alone, about 50 per cent of children in the age group of 6 to 18 do not go to school. Moreover, more than 50 per cent of the children in our country are under-nourished, while our total child population is over 400 million! According to the 2011 Census, 74.04 per cent of the adult population here is literate. This means 25.96 per cent of our population can still not read and write which makes India a country with the largest illiterate population in the world!

The 2013 Global Hunger Index (GHI) of India reads 21.3 on a scale of 100, which is considered ‘Alarming’ by the International Food Policy Research Institute. Though this is an improvement since the GHI recorded in the year 1990, a substantial number of our children still go to bed on an empty stomach.

These are the exact reasons why we need to dedicate a day to the children in our world. International Children’s Day is observed on 01 June every year, since 1925. In order to curb these alarming rates of malnourishment and illiteracy in the world, we need to start with our own country. The Akshaya Patra Foundation, with support from the Government and philanthropists, is currently feeding mid-day meals to over 1.39 school-going children in India since the year, 2000.

As this is a huge number, every single donation made towards us counts. The more the support, the higher will be the possibility of curbing the alarming rates of hunger and illiteracy in our country. Thus, this International Children’s Day, let’s attempt to make a difference in a child’s life…because while we continue to live our lives, somehow in some part of the world, a dream is withering away in silence.

Why is the thought that ‘we serve food for education’ upheld with great pride by Akshaya Patra, and even the government backing the idea by implementing mid-day meals scheme in schools?

Yes it is as simple, because you can reach out to more children in a more organised way. Government schools in particular become the obvious target, as more children from a disadvantaged economic background attend government schools. Yet, there are reasons beyond this.

Even though one can reach out to more children at schools, the strategic aim is to reach much more by incentivising food, for attending school throughout the year. In many ways an incentive that is food, brings and retains children in school which ensures them education at the same time. Let’s throw some light on how food acts as an incentive:

• Firstly, many children do not attend school because of poverty. Children are engaged as child labourers where many a time they are working for earning just one square meal of the day. Feeding in school not only gives them access to food but also ensures that they receive education, making two hits with one stone
• Once children realise that they will get one full meal that is tasty and fresh, they tend to attend school regularly, which results in a reduced dropout rate and better attendance
• Many regions have shown increased enrolment of girl children, as parents who don’t find it important to educate a girl child would still send their daughter to school since she has access to nutritious food, which is considered more essential by the parents. This way the girl child also gets an opportunity to attend school and to access education.

In a country like India where poverty is immense and the extent of hunger and malnutrition is afflicting, an initiative such as ‘food for education’ addresses a larger issue. By effective implementation of the Mid-Day Meal, children not only have access to food and education but also get an opportunity to lead a better life. Children are the future of the nation. Through the initiative of food for education, they could survive with better health while improving their employability quotient as they acquire better skills. This ensures them better income and standard of living as opposed to no education and poor health due to lack of nutrition.

If generations of children are given such an opportunity year after year, at some point in the future this effort could lead to the alleviation of poverty. Mid-Day Meal scheme is a multi-faceted approach to provide opportunities to the children of today for a better tomorrow. One meal at a time, Akshaya Patra hopes to change the lives of underserved children; aiding in realisation of their basic rights such as Right To Food and Right To Education. For many such reasons, Akshaya Patra mid-day meal has come to be known as Food for Education, and the organisation is driven by the impact the food for education has had over years.