Q: Why does Akshaya Patra raise donations from public and corporations when the government is providing subsidy for the mid-day meal program?
A: Akshaya Patra is feeding over 5 lakh children in Karnataka in five locations: Bangalore, Hubli-Dharwad, Bellary, Mysore and Mangalore. One of the important features of the Akshaya Patra program is that we feed unlimited servings to the children.
Akshaya Patra is feeding about 12 lakh children in 17 locations in India in eight states.
The subsidy we received in Karnataka (2009-10) is as follows:
Class 1 to 7 : Rs.1.80 per child + 100 gms of rice per child per day
Class 8 to 10 : Rs.2.20 per child + 150 gms of rice per child per day
The national average cost of the meal that Akshaya Patra provides is Rs.5.09 (2009-10). The national average subsidy received from the government (cash plus grain subsidy) is Rs.2.69. Hence there is a gap of Rs.2.41 to be raised by The Akshaya Patra Foundation to meet the running expenses.
National average cost break-up of the Akshaya Patra meal during the year 2009-10 (in Rupees):
Akshaya Patra feeds about 12 lakh children every day in the country. This means, Akshaya Patra has to raise a donation of Rs.28.88 lakhs per school working day. For this we have to raise donations from general public and corporations.
In addition, Akshaya Patra sets up centralized kitchens to cook for large number of children. And we do not get any support from the government to set up the kitchens. We raise donations from public and corporations to meet this expense also. So far, we have spent Rs.81.53 crores to set up seventeen kitchens in eight states in the country. Click here to see the detailed break-up of the Capital Expenses in setting up of the kitchen infrastructure in various locations till date.
Q: Does Akshaya Patra have permission from the state and/or central government for collecting donations for the mid-day meal program?
A: Yes, we do.
Ministry of Finance, Government of India: Akshaya Patra, an eligible project:
In the year 2003, we applied to the National Committee for Promotion of Social and Economic Welfare, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, Government of India, explaining our mid-day meal program. This committee is headed by the former Chief Justice of India and several other prominent citizens from all over the country.
On examining our program, Akshaya Patra was recommended as an eligible project by this National Committee to raise donations up to Rs.22 crores and grant 100% tax benefits to the donors. This committee reviewed our program in the year 2006, and further extended the benefits of 100% tax exemption to the donors for another three years. In the year 2009, Akshaya Patra program was reviewed and the tax exemption benefit to the donors was renewed for another three years.
In our application to the National Committee, we had clearly indicated the basis for the sustainability of the program as follows:
• Conversion cost support from State Govt…………………………………….25%
• Subsidized grain allotment……………………………………………………….25%
• Donations………………………………………………………………………………..45%
• Others………………………………………………………………………………………5%
We have also been filing statements of donations raised before the National Committee. Click here to read the most recent notification of the National Committee.
The Ministry of Human Resources Department Guidelines encourages voluntary contributions:
The Ministry of Human Resources Development, Government of India, has issued guidelines for conduct of the mid-day meal program and one of the clauses states:
• The Guidelines, in Annexure IX Para 7: “The state government shall be fully responsible in implementing the program through NGOs support either for a cooked meal or pre cooked food variant in eligible schools. To this extent the State Government or the NGO concerned, may mobilize resources for conversion of food grains in to a cooked meal.”
In addition, the Guidelines of revised National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education, 2004, encourages voluntary contributions from the community to improve the meal.
Voluntary Community Support for Mid-Day Meal to be encouraged
Members of the community should be encouraged and invited to contribute towards providing a wholesome meal to children. There are many social occasions like religious festivals, marriages, etc. when local families will be happy to contribute a special dish or a sweet to the school Mid-Day Meal programme. This, as also other voluntary contributions from the community (say, in the form of cooking device/cooker, utensils, dairy products, fruits, vegetables, etc.) should be encouraged.
The Akshaya Patra Trust Deed Empowers Raising Donations:
The trust deed of Akshaya Patra Foundation, which is a trust registered in Bangalore, empowers the Board of Trustees to raise donations. The clause states:
8.xi To accept gifts, donations or contributions from individuals, corporate and non-profit organizations around the world so far as they are not inconsistent with the objects of the trust.
This trust deed has been filed with the various departments of the government in the last several years.
Private-Public Partnership Model:
The Mid-day Meal program is conducted in the Private-Public Partnership model within the guidelines of the government. Civic society participation in nation building is one of the important aspects of the government’s mid-day meal program. Many eminent citizens of the country have given donations and supported us in this program.
Other NGOs also raise donations:
There are many other NGOs providing mid-day meals in the country like Nandi Foundation (Hyderabad), Adamya Chetana (Bangalore) and ISKCON Food for Life Foundation (Mumbai) and all of them also raise donations from public to conduct the mid-day meal program. All these NGOs also have websites and solicit donations online and offline for their mid-day meal programs.
Hence it is incorrect to say that the fund raising by Akshaya Patra is without permission of the Government.
Civic Society Participation in Nation Building:
Further, in a mature and civilized society, the civic society’s impetus to contribute and participate in the development of the weaker sections of the society should be encouraged. This is a universal fact and Akshaya Patra has been encouraging the public, corporations and foundations to support this program for the benefit of the children.
Gold Shied Award for Financial Reporting:
Akshaya Patra has robust accounting standards and policies, and complies with sound disclosure norms. We are audited routinely and we regularly file our accounts with the various government authorities.
Click here to view our reports
We regularly file our accounts with the various government authorities. Recognizing this, the Institute of Chartered Accounts of India conferred Gold Shield Award for Excellence in Financial Reporting for Akshaya Patra Foundation.
Yet another benefit to the Government:
The Government spends Rs.60,000 per school to set up the kitchen infrastructure for providing meals. In the case of schools where Akshaya Patra is providing the meals, the government does not have to set up the kitchen and hence this amount is saved. In Karnataka, Akshaya Patra is providing in 2320 schools, which means a saving of Rs. 60,000 x 2320 schools = Rs. 13.9 crores to the government.
Q: Does Akshaya Patra have permission of the government to receive donations from foreign countries?
Yes, it does.
For receiving donations from foreign countries, Akshaya Patra has taken the permission from Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, under Foreign Contributions (Regulations) Act and the statements of all donations received are being reported to the Home Ministry year after year. Please find the copy of the notification in our website.
The foreign donations that we receive is a small percentage of our total requirement (about 10%) and it is mostly from a few well known industrialists of Indian origin.
Click here to view the copy of the notification
For more information, click here.
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