Media Release (NR)

Mangalore, Jan 17: The Bangalore based Akshaya Patra Foundation, which runs the world’s largest NGO-run school meal programme, will host a national conclave titled ‘Zero to Billion Smiles’, on February 1, in Bangalore.

The Bangalore-based Akshaya Patra Foundation, which runs the world’s largest NGO-run school meal programme, will host a national conclave titled ‘Zero to Billion Smiles’, on February 1, 2008. More than 250 eminent CEO’s and leaders from diverse sectors such as corporates, social institutions, philanthropy, art and culture, media and politics will congregate to celebrate the foundation’s success in reaching out to over 8,00,000 children and discuss issues that will help in hunger eradication and enhance child education and attendance in schools. The conclave will be held on February 1, 2008 at Hotel Chancery Pavilion here.
 
The aim of the event is to celebrate the pioneering efforts and dramatic results accomplished by Akshaya Patra in a short span of time, since the date of its inception in the year 2000. Akshaya Patra would also deliberate a solution to address the social evil of widespread hunger and malnutrition affecting 57 million children in India, and the debilitating effects of lack of schooling and resulting illiteracy.
 
NR Narayana Murthy, chief mentor and chairman, Infosys will deliver the adress and TV Mohandas Pai, chief financial officer, Infosys, is the co-chairperson of the event committee.
 
The theme of the conference, ‘Zero to Billion Smiles’, reflects the need for communities, corporates and institutions to be equal partners in mutual cooperation and collaborate efforts for the development of child education. The conference will offer an opportunity for all participants to meet, discuss and share challenges, ideas, resources, and experiences. The goal of the foundation is a national goal, and therefore this conclave gathers immense importance as it looks forward to an India where no child will ever go hungry or miss out on education because of an empty stomach.
 
Madhu Pandit Das, chairman, the Akshaya Patra Foundation says, “Zero to Billion Smiles, will give us an opportunity to bring leaders together to share their thoughts for the noble cause of eradicating hunger from India. With Akshaya Patra’s track record of reaching out to needy children across India through school meal programme, we are confident that this platform would result in path-breaking ideas for development in child education and increasing the magnitude of our reach.”
 
Akshaya Patra Foundation: A meal today, a life tomorrow National Level School Meal Programme)
 
According to ‘Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2007’ of UNESCO, around 13.5 million children in the age group of 6-13 years are out of school in India. Despite the trillion-dollar economic growth, a large chunk of India’s younger generation does not have access to schools because of poverty and malnutrition.
 
To facilitate the education of needy children, the Akshaya Patra Foundation, provides unlimited noon meals in schools in partnership with the central and respective state governments of India. Currently the programme is feeding 8, 25,000 children in over 4,500 government, government-aided schools and anganwadis (day care centres) in 11 locations across India on any given day.
 
They are Bangalore, Hubli-Dharwad, Bellary, Mangalore and Mysore in Karnataka, Anantpur in Andhra Pradesh, Jaipur, Nathdwara and Baran in Rajasthan, Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh and Puri in Orissa. This is the largest NGO run food programme in the world.
 
Akshaya Patra is wholly an ISKCON- Bangalore initiative and its head office is headquartered in Bangalore.
 
For further information, please contact:
 
Ace Brandwidth Communication
Nikky Gupta
Phone: 9999886136