A resident of Bangalore for a quarter of a decade, Jila and his wife farm for a landowner. Prior to the lockdown the couple used to earn ₹15,000 a month, a sum that has been cut by 50 per cent. With their earnings slashed and three children to feed at home, a son and two daughters, they were struggling to make ends meet. 

Jila says that their children are continuing to study through online classes and via TV. But adds, “Though we could get online classes for them to follow, we were worried about running out of food. This Happiness Kit has truly made us happy! Now we don’t have to be scared of going hungry and the children also get stationery and books to learn, which they missed.”

Akshaya Patra has launched the Happiness Kit initiative to support their 1.8 million beneficiary children who have lost out on the midday meal the Foundation provided at their school every day. Every Kit contains dry rations, stationery, an activity book in the child’s local language, as well as a hygiene pack. 

The aim of the programme is to ensure that vulnerable children don’t get left behind with regard to their education, while the rations protect them from malnutrition.