Bhubaneswar: In a bid to eradicate hunger from the state, a non-profit organisation under its Hunger-free Odisha initiative inaugurated its second food bank at Ground Floor Hall of Ram Mandir, Bhubaneswar, on the occasion of 1st death anniversary of Pradosh Chandra Mishra.
Minister of Tourism and Culture, Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi inaugurated the food bank in the presence of the founder of the NGO.
The basic objective of the initiative is to fight against hunger and malnutrition and control food wastage in the state by channelizing excess food from individuals, weddings, restaurants, corporate offices and take it to the people who really need it and have no means or access to food. The first food bank was started at Acharya Vihar in the Capital city in the month of August 2019.
Speaking on the initiative, Pinaki Mohanty, Founder of the NGO said, “India stands first in hunger list globally where Odisha also continues to be one of the poorest states with 1/6th of its population deprived of sufficient food. Around 250 million Indians go to bed hungry every night in India. Keeping this in mind we have come up with an initiative ensuring no individual in the state is deprived of food.”
One can donate the excess food from parties or restaurants. To donate one has to make phone call to the NGO and bring the excess food to the nearest located food bank. If one cannot come then the volunteer will reach and collect the food. The food is preserved in food banks in very hygienic manner.
The state of Odisha continues to be one of the poorest states in spite of its rich natural and human potential. The disaster and emergencies compound the poverty. Almost 8 per cent children are severely malnourished and 30 per cent children fall under Grade I-IV malnutrition. The infant mortality rate (IMR) is 40 and the Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) is 237. Around 51 per cent of women age 15-49 years and 44.6 per cent children (6-59 months) are anaemic in the state.