Published on August 3, 2019
Bengaluru : Hon’ble Vice-President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu conferred the Outlook Poshan Special Jury Award on The Akshaya Patra Foundation in recognition of its valuable contribution in the Urban Nutrition (Institution) category. On the behalf of Akshaya Patra, the Foundation’s Vice-Chairman, Shri Chanchalapathi Dasa received the Special Jury Mention Certificate at a ceremony held at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi. Also present at the ceremony was Shri Ruben Banerjee, the Editor-in-Chief of Outlook.
In his address, Hon’ble Vice-President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu highlighted the importance of joint efforts to address malnutrition and acknowledged Outlook India’s efforts to bring all the people and institutions working towards this cause on a common platform. He said, “Nutrition is essential for a healthy immune system, higher-order cognitive ability, empowerment of the present and future generations, and therefore, should be a top investment priority for the country.” Stating that share and care is the core of the Indian culture, he further added that it is the duty of the state and well-meaning organisations to take care of people who cannot afford and cited Akshaya Patra as one of the organisations performing this duty.
Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani, Minister of State for Women & Child Development (WCD), supported the endeavour through a video message calling malnutrition a challenge that we as Indians need to meet together and hoping that the winners of Outlook Poshan Awards will inspire many after them so that women and children are protected against the menace that is malnutrition.
In acknowledgment to the Government’s continued support to the Foundation’s endeavour, he said, “I want to thank the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Ministry of Women & Child Development, Government of India, and all the State Governments who have given us the opportunity to serve the children of our country.”