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Akshaya Patra Foundation, serving noon meals to less than a million poor students in various parts of the country plans to extend the scheme to a billion children by year 2011.

The ISKON supported Foundation, which was serving noon meals to 8,52,922 poor children per day announced the new target at its conclave of industry and community leaders 'Zero-to-Billion' in Bangalore on Friday.

Lauding the project, Infosys Chief Mentor N R Narayana Murthy said it was an "extra-ordinary effort with an extra-ordinary impact".

If the programme has to be sustained for many years, "the two big challenges of how to develop leadership for the programme and how to nurture it have to be met," he added.

Madhu Pandit Dasa, chairman of the Foundation, said the objective of the conclave was to "act as a catalyst by building a bridge between the hands that need help and the hands that give help thus making India's growth an all encompassing one."

Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission whose message was read out at the conclave, lauded the initiative for addressing two critical challenges hunger and education.

Among those spoke included chairman of National Human Rights Commission and former Chief Justice Venkatachalaiah and former Chief Justice Rajendra Babu.

The foundation is serving noon meals to poor children in 4,500 schools in 11 locations including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa.