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Annakshetra :

Annakshetra is a Non-Government organization established in November 2010 by Center for Development Communication (CDC), Jaipur, with the aim of minimizing food wastage by effective channelization of the excess food leftover in ceremonies.

Introduction:

The main objective of this organization is to minimize food wastage which happens in lavish parties,ceremonies and weddings. Annakshetra does it by collecting surplus food from the sites (weddings, ceremonies & parties), then storing, testing and distributing it to the poor (laborers, waste workers, etc). The vision of Annakshetra is to position India as a zero food wastage economy by mobilizing social change and redeploying food resources in an efficient manner. It works with the philosophy of “each grain of food that has been cooked should be served to satisfy the hunger of the needy people. Annakshetra makes use of the 3R model and suggest show waste management aggravates at later stages and can be minimized at the initial stages. 3R model is Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, to Reduce Annakshetra runs awareness campaigns to prevent food wastage. If food is effectively reduced at the first stage then not only is the food saved for a large part of the population but also harmful effects on the environment are prevented.Source reduction means buying less quantities of any kind of processed or unprocessed food products that may end up into garbage. Reuse is Annakshetra’s recovery program. It collects the leftover food from sources and distributes among the hungry and poor. Also through Annakshetra people are motivated to use small portions to reduce post-consumer waste also called “plate waste” or“table scraps”. Consumers are encouraged to donate themselves if the leftover food is small in quantity. Recycle /Compost If the tested food is not suitable for human consumption, it is sent for composting. By recycling, Annakshetra ensures that the bio-waste does not land into landfill sites thus preventing environmental damage and improving agricultural output by improving soil. Annakshetra focuses at the first two stages of waste control i.e. source reduction and utilizing the pre-consumer waste to feed the hungry and poor.Effective waste control measures at the first two stages result in competent utilization of waste. As the waste moves towards the right ends of the chain,waste management becomes futile. Annakshetra covers entire Jaipur city with area of 111.8 km2 (43.2 sq mi). The office is located in center of the city.

History:

Initially it was started as CDC’s program, which later took shape as an independent Foundation. Annakshetra was introduced with the philosophy “to serve each grain of cooked food to satiate needy people”. During the pilot project were implemented for three months. After successful pilot phase CDC conducted few research and consultation in the area of “Food wastage” and decided to institutionalize these to make it more scientific and systematic in its operation. Presently Annakshetra foundation has 8 trustees, who meet fortnightly to discuss the issues and the way forward for the foundation. The Advisory board of Annakshetra has over 30 people from various background including Corporate,Academicians, Politicians, Civil servants etc. The entire funding of the project is being undertaken by CDC right from its inception. In 2010 the CDC initiated the project with hired vehicles. Later in February 2011 the first vehicle was brought by the Annakshetra. In May 2011 refrigerators were also bought. Encouraged by the results and its pious goals, Tata motors also donated a vehicle in July 2012. Organization covers entire Jaipur city with a population of 3.1 million and area of 111.8 km2 (43.2 sq mi). The office is located in center of the city. 75000 persons have benefit ted so far from this program with a network of 1500 donors consisting of restaurant owners, caterers and individuals-called Anna-Doots. Till February 2013 the Annakshetra has served almost half a million meals. It has 24×7 days Help Line.

Activities: 

Annakshetra Bhoj Program This is the flagship program of Annakshetra I which they collect food and distribute it to needy people on daily basis. On 14th May Annakshetra organized food distribution program on a large scale that was called as“Annakshetra Mahabhoj Program” whichwas born from the invitation of UNEP for Annakshetra to participate in their‘Feeding the 5000 program’. Thus ‘Annakshetra Mahabhoj Program’ was organizedon 14th May 2013, and promoted donation of the left-over food from marriageparties of Jaipur on the occasion of Akshay Tritya- May 13, 2013. The aim wasto collect food worth 5000 meals but with team efforts more than 2.7 tons ofhigh quality surplus food was collected and almost 10,000 people were actually served.

Workshops on Waste Management  Annakshetra also conducts workshops on foodwaste management in schools and colleges of Jaipur city to create awarenessabout food wastage being done in ceremonies and its preventive measures.