Anganwadi centres world's largest childcare institutions dedicated to essential care, support to children: Union Minister

New Delhi [India], February 7 : Anganwadi centres are the world's largest childcare institutions dedicated to providing essential care and support to children ensuring delivery of care facilities till the last mile, Minister of State for Women and Child Development Savitri Thakur told Lok Sabha on Friday.
In a written reply, she said the government's sustained initiatives on education, skilling and employment of women have resulted in increased opportunities for their employment, and more and more women are now in gainful employment, working within or outside their homes.
"Growing industrialization and urbanisation have also led to increased migration into the cities. Past few decades have shown a rapid increase in nuclear families. Thus, the children of such working women, who were earlier getting support from joint families while they were at work, are now in need of day care services which have to provide quality care and protection for the children," she said.
"Lack of proper day-care services is, often, a deterrent for women to go out and work. Hence, there is an urgent need for improved quality and reach of day care services/creches for working women amongst all socioeconomic groups both in the organized and unorganized sectors," she added.
The minister said that to address these difficulties faced by the working mothers in giving due child care and protection to their children, day-care creche facilities are being provided through Palna Scheme.
Creche services formalise the child care responsibilities hitherto considered as part of domestic work. Formalization of care work supports the "decent work campaign" to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal 8 - Decent work and economic growth. This will also enable more mothers, who will be free from unpaid child-care responsibilities, to take up gainful employment.
"Anganwadi centres are the world's largest childcare institutions dedicated to providing essential care and support to children ensuring delivery of care facilities till the last mile. In a first of its kind approach, Ministry has extended the services of childcare through Anganwadi- cum-Creche (AWCC). This will ensure whole day childcare support ensuring their well-being in a safe and secure environment," the Minister said.
She said Anganwadi-cum-Creche initiative aims to increase 'women work force participation' in the economy.
"The objective of Palna Scheme is to provide quality creche facility in safe and secure environment for children (from ages 6 months - 6 years), nutritional support, health and cognitive development of children, growth monitoring and immunization. Creche facilities under Palna are provided to all mothers, irrespective of their employment status," the minister said.
Palna is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme ensuring the participation of state, UT governments to ensure better day-to-day monitoring and proper implementation of scheme, and is implemented with a funding ratio of 60:40 except north east and Special Category states where ratio is 90:10.