KARMA COMES BACK. If one does good to others it boomerangs back and delights you in most unexpected ways. Mr Ankit Kawatra would be receiving the prestigious “Queen’s young leader’s awards 2017” by Queen Elizabeth II, herself on 29th June 2017. The award ceremony will be held in the Buckingham palace. Mr Kawatra is a candid, spirited young man committed towards eradicating hunger.
Although when Mr Ankit decided to tread up on the unknown path little did he know what fate had in store for him. He was not looking for rewards but his pure heart was stirred by the misery of poor and the apathy of others. He just wanted to eliminate hunger. He honestly says “I worked in a global business advisory firm for two years. One day, I went to a celebrity wedding where there were around 10,000 people invited for the wedding and more than 35 cuisines were laid for them. I decided to stay back to see what happened with the food. To my shock and despair, heaps of leftover food was thrown straight into the bin which could have fed 5,000 people just that single night,”
Ankit being a young man decided to help the society. He did not wait for others to change but to be the change himself. He embarked upon a new plan. He set up a new NGO known as “Feeding India”. In spite of its humble start, Feeding India soon grew leaps and bounds in a span of just a few years. Today it operates with the help of a network of 2,000 volunteers across 28 cities of India. It Helps in providing meals to the starved and hunger stricken people of the society.
Hunger is one of the major killers in India. India is high in the list of undernourished people of the world. According to food and agriculture organizations of the United Nations 194.6 million people are undernourished in India.
Feeding India follows a unique modus operand. The volunteers collect food left at the parties and hotels. They distribute this surplus food amongst the poor hungry people. The organization works very hard and so far it has managed to provide millions of meals to the needy and hunger stricken people.
The chain reaction to fight hunger has already started. Millions are joining hands with Mr Ankit to fight against hunger. Despite this tremendous start and after achieving extraordinary success at very a young, Ankit continues to remain grounded. Feeling happy but humbled at the same time he says said “Getting this recognization from the Queen herself at the Buckingham Palace is a huge honour, something that I could not even dream of. I also believe that this is a landmark for both countries, especially since UK and India have a shared history on so many fronts. An Indian’s presence at the Buckingham Palace today symbolizes the long way the two countries have come, and proves once again, how we can do so much more if we work together peacefully. A huge salute to each and every one of the
4,500 Feeding India volunteers who relentlessly make efforts to provide food to people in need doing so much for the country and the people.”
Ankit would be the honored guest at the prestigious “Cambridge University”. He would not only stay put there, but also attend a residential program. He would also be part of various workshops and exercises before attending the revered award ceremony.
This is not the first time that Ankit has been bestowed upon with such a laurel. Previously, Ankit was selected as “17 United Nations Young Leaders”. He was selected for the Sustainable Development Goals in 2016 to raise awareness about the United Nations SDGs among the youth of today.
Ankit has also been listed as a Forbes thirty, Under 30 Honoree along with actor Alia Bhatt, gymnast Dipa Karmakar, Olympic medalist Sakshi Malik, etc.
Ankit continue to be a great motivation for the young generation. Youngsters today are all ready to follow suit and move forward in their pursuit to eradicate hunger. People carve their names on stones but Ankit has carved his name on the heart of every person. Congratulations!
– Mallika Chugh