Diwali is the biggest festival celebrated by Indians across the globe. It is considered as a high point of India’s festive season. The hallmarks of this season are themes of good versus evil, admiration of Indian culture, and—most importantly—the experience of giving to friends and family.

On the occasion of Diwali, it is a long-standing tradition in India to give and receive gifts from one another. Diwali brings abundance, love and respect, and hence, the giving and receiving of gifts during Diwali symbolises camaraderie and community among individuals.

It’s that wonderful time of year again, when people enjoy wonderful time with friends and family. However, the truth is that for many of Indian children who struggle and face lack of access to healthcare and education, Diwali is just another day. These youngsters reside on the periphery of society. The COVID-19 pandemic has only made things worse for these kids, making them worse than vulnerable in the current predicament.

These children depend on us for support. And what better time to extend a helping hand to them than this festive season. This Diwali, your contribution to PM Poshan Abhiyan (previously known as the Mid-Day Meal Programme) will enable us to reach more disadvantaged and vulnerable children in India and include them in our programmes focusing on resilience development, education, nutrition, protection, and healthcare. It can gift a smile and inspire children to hope for a brighter year and provide some respite to their current circumstances.

So this Diwali, let kindness rule the hearts. Feed the hungry and come forward to make a donation to Akshaya Patra – one of the leading NGOs in India that supports food and education of children, runs various programmes, the core of which is the Mid-Day Meal Programme (MDM) or the PM Poshan Abhiyaan.

PM Poshan Abhiyaan (previously known as Mid-Day Meal Programme)

The Akshaya Patra Foundation serves hot and nutritious lunch to 2 million Government school children every school day through the PM Poshan Abhiyaan (previously known as Mid-Day Meal Programme), across 14 States and 2 Union Territories in India. These meals are prepared and distributed from 65 locations across the country.

For over 21 years, the Foundation has battled to alleviate hunger in the classroom, encouraging marginalised children to get an education and aspire for a brighter future. When you donate to feed the children, the meals act as an incentive for these children to attend school every day, thus increasing attendance and enrolment. The meals also encourage them to continue their education.

The Joy of Hot Meals

She missed the joy of being carefree around friends and teachers at school and also the nutritious midday meal. Now that schools have reopened, Aishwarya can’t stop smiling as she’s back with her friends, teachers and has lots of fun. She says: “I used to miss my friends during the lunch hour but now we can enjoy our midday meal together. I love the days when they serve sambar rice for lunch.”

When Determination and Nutrition Come Together

Given his family’s financial position, Nasir thanks The Akshaya Patra Foundation for providing mid-day meals to him from Class 5 to Class 10. Nasir was inspired by his school staff and Akshaya Patra to pursue his aspirations after completing his 10th Boards. He received a scholarship from the Foundation’s AVSAR Scholarship Program to pursue his dream of becoming a CA. He recently passed his examinations and is now a certified CA. He expresses gratitude to his parents, teachers, Akshaya Patra and friends for believing in him. He wishes to work in the manufacturing or fast-moving consumer goods industries, with the goal of eventually starting his own firm.

Celebrate Diwali differently this year by going above and beyond for the less fortunate. Make a contribution to enable them to smile and make their lives happier. The satisfaction of enhancing young people’s lives is always unmatched!

Gift a Smile this Diwali. Share the joy of this festive occasion!

This is the potential of India to beat the odds. The current pace of its evolution does not talk about its efforts to catch up with the world but to make the world strive to be at par with it.

As India grows, so do the aspirations of its people from all the backgrounds. Inspiring stories of Indian achievers around the globe are motivating our youth every day which is now taking huge leaps towards innovation and success.

Gone are the days when the aim was only to be employed. Today, India’s children dream of becoming entrepreneurs, visionaries and world leaders.

And children from low-income families REFUSE to lag behind!
Thanks to the daily mid-day meals and the support provided by various NGOs in India, children have transformed into unstoppable shooting stars who are on their way to realising their dreams.

For instance, Krish, an Akshaya Patra beneficiary, won the science fair at his school for his idea of natural composting despite his financial troubles. He says he will not stop looking for other ways to support mother Earth; bio-enzymes are his next aim.

To keep up with the efforts of these genius minds to dream and achieve, we at Akshaya Patra, are also levelling up to nourish more children at full-speed.

And that is why in a short, our NGO in India established four new kitchens with the support of our well-wishers to feed and power up the creative ambitions of the nation’s upcoming visionaries.

63rd Kitchen in Dehradun, Uttarakhand
After a successful launch of our 62nd Akshaya Patra kitchen in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh on 7 July 2022, we inaugurated our next facility in Dehradun, Uttarakhand on 15 July 2022.

The Honourable Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated this centralized kitchen supported by the Hans Foundation and the Education Department at Suddhowala, Dehradun. Thanking the NGO for its service and the Hans Foundation for their support, the Chief Minister then flagged off one of our vehicles carrying fresh food for thousands of children.

The Dehradun kitchen is the second facility in the state with the capacity to feed 35,000 fresh and nutritious meals per cooking cycle. It will serve fulfilling meals to students in 500 schools under the PM Poshan Abhiyaan.

64th Kitchen in Mansa, Gujarat
With consistent support from our donors, we launched a centralized kitchen in Mansa, Gujarat, on 23 July 2022. The 64th kitchen’s construction was funded by IndusInd Bank and inaugurated by the Honourable Union Home Minister, Shri Amitbhai Shah.

The state-of-the-art kitchen is the eighth facility in the state with the capacity to feed 26,000 children in 190 government schools.

65th Kitchen in Jorhat, Assam
Keeping up the momentum, we launched the 65th Akshaya Patra kitchen on 29 July 2022, sponsored by Credit Suisse, A.T.E. Chandra Foundation and Apraava Energy in Jorhat, Assam. It was inaugurated by the Honourable Chief Minister of Assam, Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma.

We already serve over 40,000 children in Guwahati. This is the second kitchen in Assam that can impact the lives of over 30,000 additional children through the PM Poshan Abhiyaan.

The Jorhat kitchen will follow world-class manufacturing practices and food quality standards to ensure children receive all the nutrients they need. It will also serve food according to the local palate of the children, including rice, varieties of dal, and vegetable preparations, such as aloo matar tomato sabji, kabuli chana sabji, louki with chana dal sabji, veg pulao, khichdi and kheer in a cyclic manner.

Moreover, the 65th kitchen will also provide employment opportunities to the locals, comprising women and men from various backgrounds and communities — a common feature of all our kitchens.

Final Thoughts
Our work started with a small window and is now 65 kitchens strong. Today, our kitchens are known for their advanced infrastructure, which has become a subject of study across the world. From feeding just 1,500 children, we have come a long way due to our noble pursuit.

So, let’s have faith in the dreams of our children and believe in a future full of opportunities for people from all walks of life. Make an online donation today to feed a million children every day for an entire academic year and contribute to building India’s sustainable future.