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{{Short description|Indian non-profit organization}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = The Akshaya Patra Foundation
| logo = The Akshaya Patra Foundation Logo.png
| type = [[Non Profit Organisation]]
| founded_date = 2000
| location = [[Bangalore]], [[India]]<br />'''Kitchens''' - [[Andhra Pradesh]], [[Assam]], [[Chhattisgarh]], [[Gujarat]], [[Karnataka]], [[Odisha]], [[Rajasthan]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Telangana]], [[Uttar Pradesh]]
| origins =
| key_people =
| focus =
| products = [[Lunch|Mid Day Meals]]
| method =
| revenue =
*[[Grant (money)|Government Grants]]
*[[Donations]]
| endowment =
| num_volunteers =
| num_employees =
| num_members =
| owner =
| homepage = http://www.akshayapatra.org/
https://foodforeducation.org
| footnotes =
}}
The '''Akshaya Patra Foundation''' is a [[non-profit organisation|non-profit trust]] of [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness]] (ISKCON), Bangalore. It operates [[Midday Meal Scheme]] (a [[School feeding in low-income countries|school lunch programme]]) in India.<ref name="Akshaya Patra indiagovernance" />

== Mid Day Meal program ==
Akshaya Patra is the largest partner of the Union Government of India to implement the Mid Day Meal scheme in the government run schools of India. The scheme is based on a public-private partnership.<ref name="Akshaya Patra indiagovernance">{{Cite web |url=http://indiagovernance.gov.in/bestpractices.php?id=1350 |title=Akshaya Patra is implementation of the mid-day meal programme |access-date=24 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129100629/http://indiagovernance.gov.in/bestpractices.php?id=1350 |archive-date=29 November 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Use of public money for faith based nutrition decisions ===
[[lacto-vegetarian]] and [[Vegetarianism]] are one of the four tenets of ISKCON, that runs APF.<ref name="Bryant">{{Cite book|title=The Hare Krishna movement the postcharismatic fate of a religious transplant|last=Bryant, Edwin Francis. Ekstrand, Maria.|date=2004|publisher=Columbia University Press|oclc=748865897}}</ref>

Indians who follow a [[Vegetarian]] diet in India on the basis of their religious faith based believes, consider meat and eggs as polluted. They neither eat at places with different dietary practices nor share their meal with them. Religious groups [[Brahmins]], [[Lingayats]], and [[Jains]] are [[Lactovegetarian]] groups and claim that consuming eggs hurts their sentiments.<ref name="Mahima" />

The objective of the mid day meals scheme is to deliver nutritious meals to students. While the agenda of faith-based organizations and Hindutva groups is imposing vegetarianism on their followers. According to the experts this agenda is antithetical to the objective of the mid day meals scheme.<ref name="Mahima" />

According to data collected in 2018, most states governed by the right wing [[Hindutva]], Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies do not provide eggs in meals. Some of these states have the lowest nutritional indicators. Akshaya Patra Foundation had been contracted by the government to provide midday meals but they do not provide eggs, citing their religious beliefs. The meals provided by APF are vegetarian and do not include eggs, garlic or onion.<ref name="Mahima">{{cite news |last1=Jain |first1=Mahima |title=Faith vs. nutrition: India’s school meals program walks on eggshells |url=https://www.devex.com/news/faith-vs-nutrition-india-s-school-meals-program-walks-on-eggshells-102406 |access-date=20 March 2022 |date=26 February 2022}}</ref>

For every Rs 7.40 Akshaya Patra spends per lunch per day under the mid-day meal scheme, the government provides Rs 4.38.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Are Akshaya Patra Kitchens What They are Made Out to Be?|url=https://thewire.in/education/are-akshaya-patra-kitchens-what-they-are-made-out-to-be|access-date=2021-09-27|website=The Wire}}</ref> Objections have been raised on religious considerations being part of the government food security scheme in detriment to children's food and nutritional rights.

==Organisation==
APF is run by [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness]] (ISKCON), Bangalore. The organisation was established in 2000.<ref name="Akshaya Patra indiagovernance" />
== Irregularities in the foundation's workings ==
In 2020, four of the independent trustees of APF resigned alleging misuse of funds of the foundation and governance issues in the APF.
#Former Infosys leader T.V. Mohandas Pai;
#advisor to Manipal education and medical group Abhay Jain;
#former Infosys CFO V Balakrishnan and
#co-founder of ChrysCapital Raj P. Kondur<ref>{{Cite web|title=Explainer: The Allegations Against Akshaya Patra, and Why a Probe Is Needed|url=https://thewire.in/government/akshaya-patra-trustees-resignation-explainer|access-date=2021-09-27|website=The Wire}}</ref>

These trustees had alleged that the chairman of APF, Madhu Pandit Dasa, and his supporters on the board were targeting the audit committee that was looking into the allegations of the misuse of funds. According to the trustees, the chairman and his supporters were doing this to resist transparency. In the years around 2020, the cost of a meal that APF provided had shot up by at least 5₹ in comparison to the other NGOs. This increase in cost was being investigated.<ref name="TNM Storm 18 November 2020">{{cite news |title=Storm in Akshaya Patra’s teacup: Trustees tell TNM why they resigned |url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/storm-akshaya-patra-s-teacup-trustees-tell-tnm-why-they-resigned-137847 |access-date=20 March 2022 |work=The News Minute |date=18 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>

== Other Initiatives ==
The Akshaya Patra kitchens produce about 350 kilograms of [[Biodegradation|organic]] waste each day.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=http://www.cleanfuture.co.in/2017/08/21/akshaya-patra-transforming-organic-waste-into-clean-energy/|title=Akshaya Patra: Transforming Organic Waste into Clean Energy - Clean Future|last=Kulkarni|first=Rajesh|date=2017-08-21|website=Clean Future|language=en-US|access-date=2019-04-11}}</ref> To reduce the amount of waste going to landfill, the foundation has set up [[Anaerobic digestion|biogas plants]] in some of its kitchens. This initiative started with the centralized kitchens at [[Bellary]] and [[Kumaraswamy Layout|Vasanthapura]] (Bengaluru) on [[Earth Day]] (April 22) 2016 <ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.newshour.press/ngo/akshaya-patra-adopts-a-new-organic-waste-to-biogas-system/|title=Akshaya Patra adopts a new organic waste to biogas system|last=Attri|first=Ravinder|date=2016-04-28|website=Newshour Press|language=en-US|access-date=2019-04-11}}</ref> and now extends to six kitchens across the country.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.edexlive.com/people/2018/aug/14/shruti-ahujas-ahuja-green-technologies-wants-to-help-turn-your-kitchen-waste-into-biogas-3650.html|title=This Hyderabad start-up helps you turn your kitchen waste into a biogas|website=The New Indian Express|access-date=2019-04-11}}</ref> The [[biogas]] plants, with a capacity to process 1 tonne per day (TPD) of organic waste, generate 120 to 150 m<sup>3</sup> of biogas the equivalent of 30 kilograms of [[Liquefied petroleum gas|LPG]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/iict-s-waste-to-biogas-tech-draws-good-response-115062400842_1.html|title=IICT's waste-to-biogas tech draws good response|last=Madhav|first=N.|date=2015-06-24|work=Business Standard India|access-date=2019-04-11}}</ref> This gas is consumed in the kitchen's cooking operations and saves APF [[Indian rupee|INR]] 38,500 per month.<ref name="auto1"/> This translates to savings of about 10% in total energy consumption required for cooking.<ref name="auto"/>

APF has installed of [[Photovoltaic system|solar photovoltaic]] (PV) systems at some of its kitchens. Based on the weather these systems produce 80-100 units of electricity per day and this power's the facility's daytime energy requirement e.g. the [[Bangalore|Bengaluru]] plant generates 10 kW of power and this is entirely consumed by the facility, whereas the [[Surat]] plant generates 12 kW of power with some of the surplus power being fed back to the grid for a credit.<ref name="auto"/>

After the COVID-19 lockdown was announced, Akshaypatra began a food program to feed the migrant workers. They provided cooked food as well as dry grocery kits <ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-04-20|title=2 crore meals served to vulnerable communities: Akshaya Patra Foundation|url=https://www.deccanherald.com/national/2-crore-meals-served-to-vulnerable-communities-akshaya-patra-foundation-827722.html|access-date=2020-07-12|website=Deccan Herald|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-03-28|title=Akshaya Patra undertakes relief feeding to support government’s efforts during COVID-19 outbreak|url=https://www.thestatesman.com/india/akshaya-patra-undertakes-relief-feeding-to-support-governments-efforts-during-covid-19-outbreak-1502871121.html|access-date=2020-07-12|website=The Statesman|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Awards ==
In 2019, APF received the BBC’s Global Food Champion Award.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Food Chain Global Champion Award goes to School Meals Project in India |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2019/world-service-food-chain-global-champion-winner |website=BBC World Service}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Malnutrition in India]]
* [[List of Indian states by child nutrition]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.akshayapatra.org/ The Akshaya Patra Foundation] - Official Website
* [https://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1379&context=jvbl Akshaya Patra: A Leader in Battling Classroom Hunger] - A case-study on Akshayapatra

{{Gandhi Peace Prize laureates}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Organizations established in 2000]]
[[Category:Educational organisations based in India]]
[[Category:Children's charities based in India]]
[[Category:Organisations based in Bangalore]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Rajyotsava Award 2003]]
[[Category:Winners of the Nikkei Asia Prize]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Gandhi Peace Prize]]
[[Category:2000 establishments in Karnataka]]

Akshaya Patra Foundation - Revision history

UpdateBot at 15:44, 22 June 2022