Zero Hunger With Langar

What is the issue?

‘Zero hunger’ is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations that aims to end extreme hunger and malnutrition, especially among children, by 2030.
Guru Nanak’s ‘Langar’ is contributing to achieving this goal and reducing malnutrition in African countries.

What is Langar?

Langar refers to a system of developing a community kitchen, where people irrespective of their caste, religion and social status sit together on the floor and have food.
The institution of langar finds its roots in two teachings of Sikhism -
1. ‘Naam japo, kirat karo, vand chako’ (pray, work and share with others whatever you earn) and
2. ‘Sangat aur pangat’ (eat sitting together in rows on the floor).
The word ‘langar’ has its origin in Persian and it means a public eating place where people, especially the needy, are given food.

What is the link between Guru Nanak and langar?

It is said that when Guru Nanak was a boy, his father gave him Rs 20 and sent him to buy goods, sell them and return with some profit.
However, on the way, he met some hungry holy men. He used the Rs 20 to arrange food for them.
He made them sit on the floor and served the food with his own hands.
When Nanak returned home, his father was furious as he had returned empty-handed.
But Nanak said that he did a ‘Sacha Sauda’ by feeding hungry men, which he said was ‘the most profitable deal’ for him.
Currently, Gurdwara Sacha Sauda stands at Farooqabad (Pakistan) which is where Guru Nanak is believed to have fed those sadhus.
Later in his life, Guru Nanak strengthened the practise of langar at Kartarpur, his final resting place, where he had established a dharamsal for prayers and everyone was served food without any discrimination.

What is the UN’s ‘Zero Hunger’ goal all about?

The goal of ‘zero hunger’ is specified under 17 SDGs of the UN.
Extreme hunger and malnutrition remains a huge barrier to development in many countries.
There are 821 million people estimated to be chronically undernourished as of 2017, often as a direct consequence of environmental degradation, drought and biodiversity loss.
Over 90 million children under the age of 5 are dangerously underweight.
Undernourishment and severe food insecurity appear to be increasing in Africa and South America.
In 2017, Asia accounted for nearly 63% of world’s hungry and 22% of the children under the age of 5 who were stunted across the world.

What is its aim?

By 2030, end hunger and ensure access by all people, in particular the poor and people in vulnerable situations, to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year round.
By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under the age of 5 and address nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women and older persons.

How are Sikh organisations using langar to reduce hunger?

Several Sikh organisations are now branching out to other countries where langar is used to provide nutritious meals to the undernourished.
One such organisation is ‘Zero Hunger With Langar’ which is specifically working in two African countries - Malawi and Kenya.
These are among the countries with the highest malnutrition rates among children and feature in the UN’s target list.

What does ‘Zero Hunger with Langar’ do?

‘Zero Hunger With Langar’ was found in 2016 by Jagjit Singh.
It is working under its parent body ‘Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha’.
It is currently serving over 1.50 lakh meals a month to malnourished children in Malawi and nearly 8 lakh meals a month in Kenya.
It started serving from Malawi first. They target children in primary schools, nurseries as these children are made to work in return for food.
It is serving highly nutritious porridge meals with maize, soya etc. rich in carbohydrates and other vitamins, minerals to them.
Since 2016, they have served more than 3 million meals in Malawi.
In Kenya, they are cultivating 300 acres of land and aim to serve 10 million meals a year.

What has been the impact of this movement in Malawi?

Attendance in primary schools and nurseries has improved considerably.
They are more than 90% malnutrition-free across its centers where we serve in Malawi.
UNICEF report (2018) - In Malawi, malnutrition still remains a serious challenge and contributes to preventable children deaths.
23% of all children deaths in Malawi are related to under-nutrition.
4% of under-5 children here still suffer from acute malnutrition.
There is occurrence of anaemia in 64% of children from 6 to 59 months.
37% children are affected by stunting. Just 8% children from 6 to 23 months of age meet the minimum acceptable diet.

In India, which are the largest kitchens serving langar?

The langar kitchen at Sri Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) in Amritsar feeds nearly a lakh people a day.
In Delhi, Sri Bangla Sahib gurdwara kitchen serves langar to 45,000-50,000 persons a day.

Source: The Indian Express