Through the Eyes of Wizkids

Through the Eyes of Wizkids

  • January, 1 1970
  • 2 minutes read

"Though the program is so big, what are the challenges being faced?" one bright student wanted to know.

These were the types of questions being asked by the participants of Horlicks Wizkids by Krayon 2010, Asia's largest interschool fiesta. Over 60 children from across the subcontinent, including Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal visited Akshaya Patra's H. K. Hill Bangalore kitchen to view first hand the working machinery that runs the world's largest school meal program.  

Perhaps one of the unique challenges of the mid-day meal scheme in India stems from the cultural diversity of the region, where differing staple diets and preferences require Akshaya Patra to design menus suited to the children's local palate. That includes everything from making over 100,000 rotis in just a few short hours to deciding on how best to grate all the coconut that must go into the nearly 6000 liters of sambar that is prepared everyday in each centralized kitchen.  

Curiosity and a keen intelligence, mingled with an eagerness to learn, prompted more questions as they toured the ISO22000:2005 certified infrastructure.

"Why did you start in Bangalore?" asked another young Wizkid.

The history of the Foundation itself begins with a story of compassion. Upon seeing children fighting with street dogs for food, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the inspiration for Akshaya Patra, determined that no one within a ten mile radius of our center should go hungry. To fulfill Srila Prabhupada's vision, Akshaya Patra was founded under the leadership of its Chairman, Madhu Pandit Dasa and the support of eminent citizens of Bangalore such as Mr. T.V. Mohandas Pai.

We began with just 1500 children in five schools around the city in June of 2000. Within a few weeks, scores of applications had poured in from teachers and principles around the metropolitan, highlighting the need for such a scheme and requesting Akshaya Patra to provide food for children in their schools. By April 2001, in a period of 9 months, the number of children we reached out to had increased to 12,500. Ten years later, that number has risen to over 210,000.

Over 210,000 meals before lunch break everyday. The complex logistics involved in the massive endeavor are the efforts of 10 years of dedication and diligent attention to detail of the missionaries that head the various kitchen operations of Akshaya Patra. The two facilities in Bangalore, one at H.K. Hill and another at Vasanthapura on Kanakapura road have each the capacity to prepare not only 6000 liters of samba but also 5 tons of vegetables and 6 tons of rice on a daily basis.

"Can we taste the food?" asked another Wizkid.

The menu in the state of Karnataka, based on the staple diet and the regional preferences of the children in the area consists of rice, sambar and curd on weekdays. All the Wizkids were served the Akshaya Patra food after their kitchen tour.

"I am really amazed to see [the] scale of operation…I hope in my country too they start similar programs for the benefit of students," said Moinah Medha, a Wizkid from Nepal.

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