“Breakfast is considered the most important meal in a day. About 80 per cent of the kids who come to our school don’t get even breakfast at home,” says Babita, senior most teacher at the Government High School in Hesarghatta, Karnataka. She has been teaching here for eight years now, and says that Akshaya Patra midday meal programme has brought a remarkable change in the lives of all the 360 students studying here

“Breakfast is considered the most important meal in a day. About 80 per cent of the kids who come to our school don’t get even breakfast at home,” says Babita, senior most teacher at the Government High School in Hesarghatta, Karnataka. She has been teaching here for eight years now, and says that Akshaya Patra midday meal programme has brought a remarkable change in the lives of all the 360 students studying here.

Explaining how important a meal is to ensure good education to a child, she says, “The parents of these kids work at Indian Institute of Horticultural Research [IIHR] as labourers or helpers. They leave their homes early morning and return by sundown. There’s no time for them to prepare breakfast or lunch. The meal these kids eat here is their first meal in a day. Akshaya Patra started serving here in 2007. Until then, kids would get food from home but it would always be stale or spoilt. The hot fresh meal from Akshaya Patra they are served now also helps them concentrate better in class.”

According to the teachers here, there are at least ten to twelve gifted children in each class. They are sharp in the classroom and serious about their career and future. Considering them as an example, other students follow suit and try to score better. Akshaya Patra midday meal scheme is definitely a blessing to these aspirants.