Lighthouses of Learning

The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) department and anganwadi workers have a critical role to play in the nation’s development. Beyond just being a centre for gathering children, an anganwadi centre is a place where large-scale issues like malnourishment and preschool education are addressed. As the country heads towards reaping the fruits of the demographic dividend, investment in children’s future becomes even more critical. A number of researches have revealed that the initial six years of a child’s life are crucial for both mental and physical development. This has also been recognised in the National Education Policy.

With the spirit of transforming anganwadis into advanced learning centres, an attempt is being made in Varanasi to equip them with both basic necessities and advanced learning infrastructure, such as smart TVs, Business and Learning Aid (BaLa) structural design, rooftop rainwater harvesting systems, solar panels, furniture for children, toys, learning materials, etc. Mission Parivartan has been launched in Varanasi with this objective. This approach is not limited to a few centres; the attempt is to provide scalable and district-wide solutions to the problem, to be implemented across all 3,000 anganwadi centres in Varanasi.

The Mission Parivartan initiative has achieved a remarkable milestone in transforming anganwadi centres across the district over the last three years. As part of the initiative, a total of 2,382 anganwadi buildings have been rejuvenated, with an impressive 96 per cent saturation. Additionally, 692 new anganwadi centres have been constructed, bringing the total to 3,074. This transformation aims to provide a conducive learning environment for young children, promoting their overall development and well-being. Over 3.5 lakh children aged six months to six years have benefitted from this intervention in the district over the last two and a half years.

The upgraded anganwadi centres boast several key features, including the saturation of all 18 basic parameters of Kayakalp, such as baby-friendly toilets, hand-washing units, BaLa-based painting, and LED TVs to support learning and make education more engaging for children. This is also ensuring a comfortable and interactive environment. Furthermore, these centres are now solar-powered, enabling a round-the-clock electricity supply. Other notable features include Poshan Vatika to promote health, hygiene, and sustainability. Outdoor play equipment has also been installed to encourage physical activity and development. The design of these anganwadi centres has been kept in consonance with the idea of learning and mental growth, ensuring that every part of the centre serves as a source of education. Features such as writable floors, low wall greenboards, low-hanging paintings, and wall displays ensure that each activity comes with learning, and the building’s architecture itself acts as a source of learning to the kid.

Beyond just the infrastructure, simple things like furniture, kitchen items, storage boxes, utensils, toys, first-aid kits, and utility kits with mirror, towel, and nail cutter have also been provided at all centres so that these centres function on a learning-by-doing model.

In urban areas, Mission Parivartan has made significant strides in addressing the challenge of space and land availability. Very rarely has any solution to the urban anganwadi centre problem been attempted in the past. In city-based districts and with the ever-growing size of cities, this problem is expected to become even more severe in the future. This problem existed in 991 urban anganwadi centres in Varanasi, which were functioning in dingy streets and corridors. To address this, a total of 750 new rented buildings have been provided to accommodate anganwadi centres with new rent agreements, while 65 old and unused buildings have been repurposed into anganwadi centres. Additionally, 25 Porta Cabins and recycled bus compartment-based anganwadi centres have been set up in congested areas, ensuring accessibility and convenience. These Porta Cabins have been particularly effective in solving the issue of space constraints, allowing anganwadi centres to operate in parks and playgrounds. The centres now exist in beautiful, air-conditioned rooms with smart classes for learning. The once-deserted anganwadi centres now have over 1 lakh children proudly attending them daily.

Assistance came from engineering departments, CSR partners, and NGOs, who devised standard guidelines and evolved models to address local issues. Subsequently, all field staff were trained to use these guidelines and models. Supervisors and anganwadi workers also played a pivotal role in adopting new and upgraded tools of learning, like tablets, smart TVs, and various learning materials for children.

A huge challenge was to ensure land for new centres, identifying rented buildings in urban areas, and planning the priority and locations in a manner that benefitted the whole district in a phased manner. Weekly meetings were held with Supervisors, CDPOs, and BDOs to coordinate these efforts. Standardised new rent agreements were drafted. Within a month of these interventions, results started coming up. For monitoring different components, a control room was set up at the ICDS office, and Google Forms were used for daily reporting on various indicators. CSR funds came in handy for rolling out the programme. Help came from companies like Vedanta and Reliance Foundation. Besides CSR, MGNREGA funds, Gram Panchayat funds, and Critical Gap funds were also utilised to bridge small gaps in the campaign—such as for Poshan Vatika, electrification, boundary walls, etc. There was enormous support from political leadership.

The impact of Mission Parivartan has been profound. Attendance at anganwadi centres has increased significantly—from 35 per cent to 80 per cent—indicating improved engagement and enthusiasm among children. Moreover, severe malnourishment has decreased dramatically, from 7.7 per cent to 0.12 per cent, reflecting the effectiveness of the programme. Learning outcomes have improved drastically. NIPUN assessment results show a remarkable improvement from 40 per cent to over 90 per cent for Class 1 students in government primary schools. Parents are now sending their children to anganwadi centres instead of private play schools, highlighting the success of the initiative.

What has been achieved in Varanasi under the inspired leadership of this young IAS officer, Himanshu Nagpal, is amazing. Here is a model that can be replicated and scaled through public-private partnership in the true spirit of Nexus of Good.

The writer is an author and a former civil servant. Views expressed are personal