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How Children in Telangana Benefit from the Mid-Day Meal Scheme

The school lunch served by The Akshaya Patra Foundation in Telengana has been successful in motivating children to attend school with its wholesome lunch. The initiative is a part of the Mid-Day meal Scheme by the Government of India

The school lunch served by The Akshaya Patra Foundation in Telengana has been successful in motivating children to attend school with its wholesome lunch. The initiative is a part of the Mid-Day meal Scheme by the Government of India

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The Akshaya Patra Foundation<br />

<strong>How</strong> <strong>Children</strong> In<br />

<strong>Telangana</strong> <strong>Benefit</strong><br />

From The <strong>Mid</strong>-<strong>Day</strong>-<br />

<strong>Meal</strong>-<strong>Scheme</strong><br />

Akshaya Patra<br />

10-9-2017


The menu of <strong>the</strong> mid-day meal be<strong>in</strong>g served <strong>in</strong> <strong>Telangana</strong> schools is a formidable example of<br />

how healthy food catered to children should be. Nutritious meals help children <strong>in</strong> fight<strong>in</strong>g<br />

hidden hunger because <strong>the</strong>y take care of essential m<strong>in</strong>erals and vitam<strong>in</strong>s that are important<br />

for <strong>the</strong> growth of a child.<br />

The <strong>Mid</strong>-<strong>Day</strong> <strong>Meal</strong> <strong>Scheme</strong> is run by The Akshaya Patra Foundation <strong>in</strong> <strong>Telangana</strong>. The menu<br />

of <strong>the</strong> mid-day meal comprises of pulses such as toor dal, fortified soy dal, green gram whole,<br />

urad dal, peas, moong dal, cow pea, green gram sprouts, soy products like- chunks, flakes,<br />

gram dal, bengal gram whole, channa dal, etc.<br />

These are high <strong>in</strong> fibre, low <strong>in</strong> fat and have complex carbohydrates which is healthy for <strong>the</strong><br />

body. Pulses provide folate that is known for lower<strong>in</strong>g homocyste<strong>in</strong>e levels. It has been<br />

proven that high homocyste<strong>in</strong>e levels damage <strong>the</strong> l<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g of arteries and promotes plaque<br />

build-up and blood clots. Eventually, this k<strong>in</strong>d of damage can block blood flow to <strong>the</strong> heart or<br />

bra<strong>in</strong>. Thus, when pulses are served to children <strong>from</strong> an early age, <strong>the</strong>y develop stronger<br />

folate levels that fight <strong>the</strong> risk of heart attack as <strong>the</strong> children grow.<br />

<strong>Children</strong> charity The Akshaya Patra Foundation is observ<strong>in</strong>g Hunger Action Month, as part of<br />

which, <strong>the</strong>y are aim<strong>in</strong>g at fight<strong>in</strong>g aga<strong>in</strong>st hidden hunger. In India, many children are deprived<br />

of nutritious meal. As a result, <strong>the</strong>ir growth rema<strong>in</strong>s stunted. A child is known to be suffer<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>from</strong> hidden hunger when he is deprived of a wholesome meal.


At Akshaya Patra, <strong>the</strong> menu of mid-day meal is designed with utmost care, <strong>in</strong> order to make<br />

<strong>the</strong> food tasty and healthy. The menu is changed every day so that <strong>the</strong> children relish it with<br />

equal enthusiasm. Pulses form an <strong>in</strong>tegral part of <strong>the</strong> mid-day meal scheme <strong>in</strong> <strong>Telangana</strong>.<br />

They are also a rich source of iron, calcium, magnesium, z<strong>in</strong>c and potassium.<br />

While serv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong>se mid-day meals to children <strong>in</strong> Telengana, <strong>the</strong> Foundation ensures that <strong>the</strong><br />

food is cooked <strong>in</strong> hygienic conditions. The Foundation’s state-of-<strong>the</strong>-art kitchens which are<br />

equipped with latest technology enable <strong>the</strong> employees to cook food us<strong>in</strong>g a systematic<br />

procedure. It currently has 33 kitchens across <strong>the</strong> country. Over 1.6 million children benefit<br />

<strong>from</strong> this <strong>in</strong>itiative.<br />

<strong>Children</strong> need a lot of energy <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir adolescence as <strong>the</strong>y participate <strong>in</strong> a lot of sports. A meal<br />

that’s rich <strong>in</strong> pulses helps regulate <strong>the</strong> energy levels and manage digestive system. The meals<br />

served to children have enough nutritious value to ensure that <strong>the</strong> body gets a slow-burn<strong>in</strong>g<br />

and steady energy supply. The iron content <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong>se diets helps transport<strong>in</strong>g oxygen <strong>in</strong>to <strong>the</strong><br />

body which <strong>in</strong> turn boosts energy production and metabolism.<br />

The mid-day meal scheme <strong>in</strong> Telengana aims at provid<strong>in</strong>g considerable amount of wholesome<br />

lunch to school children. The children’s charity is ensur<strong>in</strong>g that children com<strong>in</strong>g to<br />

Government and Government-aided schools don’t go home hungry.<br />

If you wish to jo<strong>in</strong> hands <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> mission, be a part of this cause and donate to charity today.<br />

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