Dear Aunty/Uncle,

How are you? I am fine, thank you. My name is Rani. I am studying in the 10th standard. We do not know each other, but I thank you from the bottom of my heart for changing my life forever.

I come from a small village outside Bangalore. My parents moved to the city to find work, leaving behind their farms. It was not easy at all. My father found work on a construction site and my mother works in other people’s houses. Even I had to do small-small jobs to earn money. There was no other way. How would we eat otherwise? I thought moving to a big city meant that I could go to school. But it looked like an impossible dream.

Then one day, we heard about this school that feeds children. I begged my parents to consider sending me to school now. After all, their burden would be reduced, right? After much pleading, they finally agreed. And I started going to school. My first day at school was the happiest day of my life. I’ve never missed a single day of school since then.

At school, I asked my teacher, “Who is sending us this food?” The teacher told me that it was you, and many more people like you. She told me that you made a special contribution to help Akshaya Patra make this meal for me. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to you, and to Akshaya Patra. That is why I am writing you this letter today, to thank you. I cannot imagine my life without this meal and without this school.

Please keep up the good work. I will also send you letters from time to time, telling you about what is happening in my life.
Yours sincerely,
Rani

A balanced diet is one which contains a proper concentration of essential nutrients like proteins, vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates and so on, that help the body function well and maintain good health. This is a necessity in every individual. However, a balanced diet in children is an absolute necessity. At The Akshaya Patra Foundation, we don’t just prepare meals for children; we make sure that every meal that reaches our beneficiaries is enriched with the required components for their physical, cognitive and mental development.

Vitamins and Minerals: Beetroot, cabbage, cauliflower and carrots are the most common ingredients found in the mid-day meal on any given day. These are rich in vitamins and minerals that are highly responsible for the mental growth and cognitive development in children.

Carbohydrates: The Akshaya Patra kitchens situated in the Southern region of India prepare rice to suit the local palate, whereas in the North, we provide Rotis to the children. Both the varieties contain sufficient amount of carbohydrates that help store energy in the body. This helps children stay active all through the day.

Proteins: Spinach, potatoes and pulses like lentils and beans are regularly used in the mid-day meals. A major advantage of these vegetables is that they are low in saturated fat and high in fibre which helps keep the body fit and active while also regulating the body’s metabolism.

What’s more, even the ingredients used in garnishing all the vegetable dishes like curry leaves, cardamom, coriander, cumin seeds, cloves and so on, also have some nutritional concentration in them. At every Akshaya Patra kitchen across 10 states and 22 locations in India, there is no compromise when it comes to including nutritional ingredients in the meal that a child is about to consume.

At our kitchens, we strongly believe that childhood is a sensitive period of development when growth occurs and we want to provide our children with all the nutrients they need to succeed in life.