Released on = August 2, 2007, 12:23 am

Press Release Author = Jossi Fresco

Industry = Agriculture

Press Release Summary = It has been one year since the inception of Food for People,
a 10,000-square-foot custom-built facility funded by The Prem Rawat Foundation
(TPRF).

Press Release Body = It has been one year since the inception of Food for People, a
10,000-square-foot custom-built facility funded by The Prem Rawat Foundation (TPRF).
The facility has provided more than 150,000 meals to tribal people in need in the
state of Jharkhand, in northeastern India. Developed and operated in consultation
with village elders, the assistance provided has brought hope to the people of this
remote area where malnutrition until now ran rampant and people struggled just to
survive.
After attending the first anniversary celebration, Linda Pascotto, president of
TPRF, said, "The children are noticeably healthier and attend school more regularly.
In the past, many dropped out of school before they were ten to work for food to
help the family survive. Now, school attendance is up, and there is reason to expect
that more young people will stay in school long enough to develop marketable skills
and earn a better living.
"Many have expressed their appreciation," she reports. "One thirteen-year-old boy
told me, 'The food always tastes good. I am feeling better now and am starting to do
well in school.' A young father told me, 'Now that I have enough to eat, I am
gaining back my ability to work. Without food, I was too weak to work. Now I have
enough strength to support my family.'"
Because they live in a remote tribal area, the needs of people there have been
passed over by larger organizations that concentrate on denser populations. And yet,
fewer than 10 percent of the people can read and write, and healthcare facilities
are nonexistent. The mortality rate for children is twice that of the rest of India,
and it is rare for adults to live to their fifties.
As long as the focus of each family is just foraging for food each day, the cycle of
poverty cannot be reversed. Recognizing this and understanding that the villagers
would need sustained help if they were ever to become self-sufficient, TPRF began
work well over a year ago to build a facility where nutritious meals based on local
cuisine could be provided. A six-acre plot of land was purchased, and a
well-equipped facility was built. Some of the villagers were then trained to operate
the facility at the highest level of sanitary and nutritional standards.
Food for People was the vision of Prem Rawat, known widely as Maharaji. He founded
The Prem Rawat Foundation, whose humanitarian efforts have also brought disaster
relief and food aid to people in need in Côte d'Ivoire, Mozambique, Niger, Ghana,
Israel, Lebanon, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Australia,
Grenada, Guatemala, Mexico, and the United States.

Web Site = http://www.tprf.org

Contact Details = Add:-P.O. Box 241-1498, Los Angeles, CA, US-90024
Ph.no.:-1.31039257
E-Mail:-maharajitprf@gmail.com