Gorakhpur: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday inaugurated a state-of-the-art central kitchen (centralized mid-day meal facility) set up by the Akshaya Patra Foundation in Gorakhpur. The facility is designed to provide hygienic, nutritious, and large-scale meal distribution to school children under the PM POSHAN scheme.
During the inauguration, the Chief Minister emphasized that ensuring quality and nutritious food for school children remains one of the top priorities of the state government. He said such innovative social initiatives form a strong foundation for building a better future for children.
Modern Central Kitchen Equipped with Advanced Automation
The newly launched facility in Gorakhpur is fully equipped with modern technology, automated systems, and contactless food preparation processes. Built across approximately 2.5 acres, the kitchen operates on a hybrid gas and steam-based model, ensuring both efficiency and sustainability.
The entire cooking process has been designed to maintain high standards of hygiene and nutrition through:
- Fully automated food preparation systems
- Large-scale industrial kitchen equipment
- Scientific and contactless operations
- Real-time production efficiency controls
According to officials, the facility reflects a strong commitment to delivering safe and high-quality meals at scale.
Capacity to Serve 1 Lakh Meals Daily Under PM POSHAN Scheme
The central kitchen will prepare and distribute around 1 lakh freshly cooked, nutritious meals daily for school children in Gorakhpur and nearby rural and urban areas.
Key highlights include:
- Large-scale mid-day meal production under the PM POSHAN scheme
- Distribution to government primary and upper primary schools
- Expansion of coverage across surrounding districts
- Support to millions of children over time through scalable infrastructure
The initiative aims to reduce malnutrition and improve school attendance by ensuring children receive consistent, healthy meals.
40,000 Rotis Per Hour and Advanced Cooking Systems
The facility is equipped with specialized machinery, including two large automated roti-making machines, capable of producing up to 40,000 rotis per hour.
This ensures:
- Continuous large-scale meal production
- Timely food preparation for school distribution
- Consistency in food quality and output efficiency
Officials highlighted that the system enables uninterrupted operations even at peak demand levels.
Eco-Friendly Operations with Solar, Water Conservation and EV Fleet
The kitchen has been developed with a strong focus on environmental sustainability. It incorporates:
- Solar energy usage
- Rainwater harvesting systems
- A 2 lakh-litre wastewater treatment plant
- Waste management infrastructure
For distribution, the facility operates a fleet of 23 electric vehicles, significantly reducing carbon emissions while ensuring efficient last-mile delivery of meals to schools.
Government and Social Impact Vision
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath praised the initiative, stating that the expansion of such facilities ensures that no child goes hungry and access to nutritious food becomes universal. He added that collaboration between the government and social organizations is essential to achieve this goal.
Officials also noted that the initiative, launched in Gorakhpur in 2019, has now expanded significantly in scale and reach, marking a major milestone in the region’s mid-day meal infrastructure.
About Akshaya Patra Foundation
The Akshaya Patra Foundation is a non-profit organization working to eliminate classroom hunger in India by implementing large-scale school meal programs under government schemes such as PM POSHAN. With modern centralized kitchens across the country, the foundation focuses on delivering hygienic, nutritious meals to schoolchildren while using technology-driven and sustainable food production systems.
