The Chief Minister's Office of Telangana announced on Friday, 24 July 2026 that Divi's Laboratories and Aurobindo Pharma have handed over Corporate Social Responsibility funds to the Hare Krishna Movement Charitable Foundation in the presence of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy to support the state's school breakfast programme in government schools.

Context

The handover ceremony took place at the Bodhi Pavilion, MCR HRD Institute, Hyderabad, where representatives of the Hare Krishna Movement Charitable Foundation, Divi's Laboratories, and Aurobindo Pharma met the Chief Minister. Divi's Laboratories presented a cheque of Rs 12.18 crore while Aurobindo Pharma contributed Rs 10 crore under their respective CSR mandates. CM Revanth Reddy publicly congratulated both companies for directing their CSR funds toward the nutrition programme.

The Hare Krishna Movement Charitable Foundation — widely associated with the Akshaya Patra initiative — operates centralised kitchens to deliver quality breakfast and midday meals to students in government schools. The foundation's model has been replicated across multiple Indian states in partnership with state governments.

Policy Backdrop

India's Mid Day Meal Scheme, launched in 1995 under the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education, laid the groundwork for structured nutrition support in government schools. The Akshaya Patra Foundation began scaling centralised kitchen models from 2000 onward, becoming one of the largest NGO partners for school meal delivery across the country.

Under the Companies Act 2013, eligible Indian companies are required to spend a prescribed share of their profits on CSR activities, and education and nutrition have emerged as priority sectors for corporate contributions. Telangana's breakfast scheme builds on this national framework by channelling private-sector funds through an established NGO delivery mechanism.

Farmer Linkage and Organic Push

Chief Minister Revanth Reddy used the occasion to outline a broader agricultural vision tied to the programme. He informed representatives that the government is exploring direct procurement of vegetables, rice, and other supplies from farmers located near the Hare Krishna Foundation's centralised kitchens. The CM added that the government intends to encourage these farmers to shift toward organic cultivation and will facilitate the supply of quality seeds to support that transition.

The proposal signals an intent to use the breakfast scheme as an anchor for crop-diversification and income-improvement among small farmers in the vicinity of the kitchens. The CM noted that such procurement linkages could deliver better returns to farmers while ensuring fresh, locally sourced ingredients for school meals.

Key Officials and Attendees

The event was attended by K. Ramakrishna Rao, Government Adviser; N. Sridhar, Principal Secretary to the CM; Satya Gaura Chandra Dasa Prabhu Ji, President of the Hare Krishna Movement Charitable Foundation; Madhu Babu, Vice President of Divi's Laboratories Limited; and Nityananda Reddy, Managing Director of Aurobindo Pharma Limited, along with other representatives.

What's Next

The government's next steps will be closely watched on two fronts: the establishment of additional centralised kitchens by the Hare Krishna Foundation to expand breakfast coverage, and the operationalisation of direct farmer-procurement channels for vegetables and rice. Progress on encouraging organic farming near kitchen hubs will also be a key indicator of whether the scheme evolves into a broader agri-nutrition convergence model for Telangana.