Bangalore 20th February
2012: Through a US $ 441,000 grant to the
Akshaya Patra Foundation, the Caterpillar Foundation has reaffirmed its
commitment to support access to education and basic human needs in India. The grant will help Akshaya Patra to acquire
much needed capital equipment that will enhance the efficiencies of its large
kitchens that produce above 100000 meals for children who study in government
schools.
Akshaya Patra is in a
public-private partnership with the Central and eight state governments to
implement the mid-day meal program, and currently reaches out to about 1.3
million children across the country.
These children are assured of a hot, fresh noon meal every school
working day, which is prepared to the highest standards of quality and hygiene.
The quality and hygiene which are hallmarks of the Akshaya Patra program have
been made possible through the use of technology and industrial kitchens that
can produce meals in large quantities.
While 60 per cent of the funds required for the program are provided
through grain and cash subsidies by the government, Akshaya Patra has to raise
the deficit of 40 per cent through partnerships with corporates, PSUs,
individuals etc.
“Hunger and malnutrition
are huge issues in the developing world, and Caterpillar is committed to
addressing these issues through the support of the Caterpillar Foundation. We seek to partner with organizations with a
track record of delivering results to underserved populations in the areas of
education, health and nutrition. In Akshaya Patra, we have found just the kind
of commitment we are looking for.
Akshaya Patra is a vibrant example of how a program can be scaled up to
make a large difference. By helping to
fund their deficits for capital expenditure, we are very happy that we can add
value to their program,” said Kevin Thieneman, Country Manager, Caterpillar –
India/ASEAN & China.
“Caterpillar has been a
valuable supporter of our program.
Akshaya Patra is extremely proud to acknowledge this association. Their support will help us to make our
kitchens even more technologically advanced – a factor that will enhance the
strength of our program and ensure that even more children are benefited from
it. It is also significant to mention
here that the meal programme results in the children getting access to
education along with the meal. This support
therefore has dual impact as it helps provide food for education. It will also help greatly towards achieving
our mission of reaching five million children by 2020,” said Shri
Chanchalapathi Dasa, Vice Chairman, The Akshaya Patra Foundation.
The Caterpillar grant will
be used to upgrade the facilities of the kitchens at Assam, Karnataka, Gujarat,
UP and Orissa. The grant will have a positive impact on the lives of 1.1
million children, who hail from these states by addressing hunger and enabling
education for them.
About The Akshaya Patra Foundation
The
Akshaya Patra Foundation, a not-for-profit organization, came into being in the
year 2000 to address two of the most immediate challenges of India - hunger and
education. The Foundation began its work
by providing quality mid-day meals to 1500 children in 5 schools in Bangalore
with the understanding that the meal would attract children to schools, after
which it would be easier to retain them and focus on their holistic
development. 10 years later, the
Foundation has expanded its footprint to cover about 1.3 million children in 8
states across India. Public-private
partnerships with the Central and respective state governments have helped to
scale up the programme rapidly and make a difference.
More
details can be found at www.akshayapatra.org
About the Caterpillar
Foundation
The Caterpillar Foundation is the
philanthropic arm of Caterpillar Inc., the world's leading manufacturer of
construction and mining equipment. Founded in 1952, the Caterpillar Foundation
has contributed more than $500 million to help make sustainable progress
possible around the world by providing program support in the areas of
environmental sustainability, access to education and basic human needs. More
information is available at www.caterpillar.com/foundation.
For editorial
enquires contact:
Manish Sharma
Manager-Communications,
The Akshaya Patra
Foundation,
Ph: 080 32022991
(Direct)
M: 9886052803
Manish.sharma@akshayapatra.org
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