Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Govt. at last pays attention to children' that was published in Newsband

Govt. at last pays attention to children

In India, issue relating to education for children was being ignored. But now the government seems to have woken up. After a long period of neglect, Indian government now promises to devote attention to the issue of preparing all children for primary schooling. The National Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) policy recently approved by the Union Cabinet is the proof.

This policy has led to the mushrooming of expensive crèches, play schools, nursery schools and so on. The ECCE policy will cover 158.7 million children in the 0 to 6 year age group. The government has promised to take care of every aspect of children, may it be health, nutrition, age-appropriate care, stimulation and early learning in a protective and enabling environment.

Discussions between the Ministry of Women and Child Development and the States on the ECCE policy should continue for it to succeed across public, private and voluntary sectors.

It is not that government had not come up with a policy relating to this issue earlier. But the implementation of these policies was not proper. The delivery of supplementary nutrition and pre-school education was depressingly poor. Infrastructure was so weak that many anganwadi centres had no toilet and no drinking water.

What is good about ECCE policy is that the child’s mother tongue or language spoken at home will get the top priority and this will be followed by child’s exposure to oral English and regional languages. This is a perfect step taken to enhance child development.

Why should we expect the government only to do everything? The private big shots can also contribute in the sense that they too can come up with private play school, nursery etc that will help in child’s development. The private sector should tale the initiative to run anganwadi or economically feasible play schools. Just Bills and laws can not help poor children - this we have learnt from Right to Education Act. You go to any reputed school and you find very less percentage of poor children.

The government is spending exorbitant amount for sending rockets to Mars. The government must focus on primary education first before going to Mars.

It is highly depressing that Child health and education has been overlooked for so many years even in the well-to-do states of India which boasts of economic prosperity despite the prevailing economic slowdown. The profits are illegally raked in by the mushrooming of expensive playschools, nursery schools etc which leave no other options

for the parents but to admit their children in these schools despite their own financial fiasco.

ECCE policy needs to be implemented in such a way that it should provide some respite from this current scenario and make the children flourish in their endeavours.