Integrated child
development scheme (ICDS) in India
and Suggestions for Improvement
INTRODUCTION:
ICDS
Launched on 2nd October 1975, today, ICDS Scheme represents one
of the world’s largest and most unique programmes for early childhood
development. ICDS is the foremost symbol of India’s commitment to her children
– India’s response to the challenge of providing pre-school education on one
hand and breaking the vicious cycle of malnutrition, morbidity, reduced
learning capacity and mortality, on the other.
The main
reason to start this ICDS is “Majority of children in
India have underprivileged childhoods starting from birth. The infant mortality rate of Indian children is 44 and the under-five mortality rate is
93 and 25% of newborn children are underweight among other nutritional,
immunization and educational deficiencies of children in India. Figures for
India are substantially worse than the developing country area average. Given
such a daunting challenge, ICDS was first launched in 1975 in accordance to the National Policy for Children in India. Over the years it has grown into one
of the largest integrated family and community welfare schemes in the world. Given its effectiveness over the last
few decades, Government of India has committed towards ensuring
universal availability of the programme”
OBJECTIVES OF ICDS:
·
To improve the nutritional and health status of
children in the age-group 0-6 years;
·
To lay the foundation for proper psychological,
physical and social development of the child;
·
To reduce the incidence of mortality, morbidity,
malnutrition and school dropout;
·
To achieve effective co-ordination of policy and
implementation amongst the various departments to promote child development;
·
To enhance the capability of the mother to look
after the normal health and nutritional needs of the child through proper
nutrition and health education
The services are provided under the ICDS to help achieve its
objectives..
·
Immunization
·
Supplementary
nutrition
·
Health
checkup
·
Referral
services
·
Pre-school
non formal education
·
Nutrition
and health information
From the above services there are three
services mainly immunization, health check-up, and referral services are
delivered through the public health infrastructure under the ministry of health
and family welfare.
WHO ARE
IN THE ICDS AND THEIR ROLES ?
The
ICDS team comprises the Anganwadi Workers, Anganwadi Helpers, Supervisors,
Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs) and District Programme Officers
(DPOs). Anganwadi Worker, a lady selected from the local community, is a
community based frontline honorary worker of the ICDS Programme. She is also an
agent of social change, mobilizing community support for better care of young
children, girls and women. Besides, the medical officers, Auxiliary Nurse
Midwife (ANM) and Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) form a team with the
ICDS functionaries to achieve convergence of different services….
The services provided by the ICDS in detailed has
·
Nutrition including supplementary nutrition: This includes supplementary feeding and
growth monitoring; and prophylaxis against vitamin A deficiency and control of
nutritional anaemia. By providing supplementary
feeding, the Anganwadi attempts to bridge the caloric gap between the national
recommended and average intake of children and women in low income and
disadvantaged communities.
·
Immunization: Immunization of pregnant
women and infants protects children from six vaccine preventable diseases-poliomyelitis,
diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, tuberculosis and measles. These are major
preventable causes of child mortality, disability, morbidity and related
malnutrition. Immunization of pregnant women against tetanus also reduces
maternal and neonatal mortality.
·
Health Check-ups: This
includes health care of children less than six years of age, antenatal care of
expectant mothers and postnatal care of nursing mothers. The various health
services provided for children by anganwadi workers and Primary Health Centre
(PHC) staff, include regular health check-ups, recording of weight,
immunization, management of malnutrition, treatment of diarrhoea, de-worming
and distribution of simple medicines etc.
·
Referral
Services: During health check-ups and growth monitoring, sick or malnourished
children, in need of prompt medical attention, are referred to the Primary
Health Centre or its sub-centre. The anganwadi worker has also been oriented to
detect disabilities in young children. She enlists all such cases in a special
register and refers them to the medical officer of the Primary Health Centre/
Sub-centre.
·
Nutrition and
Health Education: Nutrition, Health and Education (NHED) is a key element of the
work of the anganwadi worker. This forms part of BCC (Behaviour Change
Communication) strategy. This has the long term goal of capacity-building of
women – especially in the age group of 15-45 years – so that they can look
after their own health, nutrition and development needs as well as that of
their children and families.
By our team observation the above services are done by the
anganwadi workers carefully and they are well trained. In our state
Andhrapradesh there are different schemes which are implanted by our government
like mid-day male, providing uniforms, text books, and a boiled egg for every
student every day to provide the good nutrients for the children under the age
06-14years, it will be given by the anganwadi workers by going every home. They
also teach the people to give the good nutrition value food for their children.
à By studied recent status in India our team members ensure that
education is fundamental right of every child from age 6.however,contemporary
research establishes the fact that child’s brain grows at an extraordinary in
first 6 years of his/her life…..thus the education for children is essentially
important as “Today’s children are
tomorrow’s future of India”.
àBy visiting ANGANWADI centers we noticed that they people who
worked there played a vital role to enhance the overall development of child by
creating healthy environment among children and providing nutritious food
funded by government .thus ANGANWADI centers are spectacular for children..
àTo tackle malnutrition , JEEVANASHA programme is launched by our
government in all states. Malnutrition , which is often associated with the poor and rural population,is a malaise
that hasn’t spared even the well-to-do- urban people. A recent survey conducted
by health dept. has revealed that on an average 48-52% children are suffering from malnutrition.
National nutrition programmes being implemented for preventing the deficiencies
like periodic mega vitamin A, distribution of iron and folic acids tablets,
and salt iodization.
Factors that it can be made
as effective:
>By giving proper guidance to people who work
in ANGANWADI centers and some motivation from the government organizations ,
providing funds necessarily useful to feed children from malnutrition effects….
>Government should implement awareness
programs to tell the importance of breastfeeding to the newly born babies…
>Government should made significant progress in improving the
health conditions of it’s population in terms of reducing the infant mortality
rate and increasing the life expectancy
CONCLUSION:
Thus ICDS aims at providing services to pre-school children in an
integrated manner so as to ensure proper growth and development of children in
rural, urban areas. They also want to improve the nutrition values in the
children under the age 06-14years
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