Integrated Child Development Services
{{Short description|Indian government program}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox project
| country = India
| launched = {{Start date and age|1975|10|02|df=y}}
}}
Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) is a government program in India which provides nutritional meals, preschool education, primary healthcare, immunization, health check-up and referral services to children under 6 years of age and their mothers.{{Cite web |url=https://icds-wcd.nic.in/icds.aspx |title=INTEGRATED CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES (ICDS) SCHEME |publisher=Government of India|access-date=18 February 2019}} The scheme was launched in 1975, discontinued in 1978 by the government of Morarji Desai, and then reinstated by the Charan Singh soon after with support of the Indira Gandhi opposition.
Tenth five-year plan also linked ICDS to Anganwadi centres established mainly in rural areas and staffed with frontline workers.{{cite journal | access-date=11 February 2015 | url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTPUBSERV/Resources/477250-1187034401048/dasgupta.pdf | title=Improving Child Nutrition? The Integrated Child Development Services in India |year=2005 |author1=Michael Lokshin |author2=Monica Das Gupta |author3=Michele Gragnolati andOleksiy Ivaschenko | journal=Development and Change | volume=36 | issue=4 | pages=613–640| doi=10.1111/j.0012-155X.2005.00427.x }} In addition to improving child nutrition and immunization, the programme is also intended to combat gender inequality by providing girls the same resources as boys.
A 2005 study found that the ICDS programme was not particularly effective in reducing malnutrition, largely because of implementation problems and because the poorest states had received the least coverage and funding. During the 2018–19 fiscal year, the Indian federal government allocated {{INRConvert|16335|c}} to the programme, which is 60% of the funding for the programme while the states allocated the remaining 40%.{{Cite web|url=https://www.accountabilityindia.in/budget/briefs/download/1812|title=Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS)|access-date=18 February 2019|archive-date=19 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219015641/https://www.accountabilityindia.in/budget/briefs/download/1812|url-status=dead}} The widespread network of ICDS has an important role in combating malnutrition especially for children of weaker groups.{{Cite web|title = Has the ICDS helped reduce stunting in India?|url = http://www.ideasforindia.in/article.aspx?article_id=1513|website = ideasforindia.in|access-date = 9 October 2015|archive-date = 20 October 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151020135733/http://www.ideasforindia.in/article.aspx?article_id=1513|url-status = dead}}
Background
The infant mortality rate of Indian children is 3.4%{{Cite web|url=http://niti.gov.in/content/infant-mortality-rate-imr-1000-live-births|title=Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) (per 1000 live births) {{!}} NITI Aayog, (National Institution for Transforming India), Government of India|website=niti.gov.in|access-date=18 February 2019}} and the under-five mortality rate is 3.9%{{Cite web|url=https://www.indiaspend.com/indias-under-5-mortality-now-matches-global-average-but-bangladesh-nepal-do-better/|title=India's Under-5 Mortality Now Matches Global Average, But Bangladesh, Nepal Do Better|date=20 September 2018|website=IndiaSpend|language=en-US|access-date=18 February 2019}} and 25% of newborn children are underweight among other nutritional, immunization and educational deficiencies of children in India. Figures for India are below the standards of the developed world.
ICDS was launched in 1975 in accordance to the National Policy for Children in India.{{cite journal | vauthors = Kapil U | title = Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme: a program for holistic development of children in India | journal = Indian Journal of Pediatrics | volume = 69 | issue = 7 | pages = 597–601 | date = July 2002 | pmid = 12173700 | doi = 10.1007/bf02722688 | s2cid = 37879920 }} Over the years it has grown into one of the largest integrated family and community welfare schemes in the world.{{cite web|title=UNICEF - Respecting the rights of the Indian child|url=http://www.unicef.org/sowc01/panels/panel7.htm|publisher=UNICEF|access-date=22 March 2011}} Given its effectiveness over the last few decades, Government of India has committed towards ensuring universal availability of the programme.{{cite web| vauthors = Dhar A |title=Infant mortality rate shows decline|url=http://www.thehindu.com/health/policy-and-issues/article1130983.ece|date=27 January 2011|work=The Hindu|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025080827/http://www.thehindu.com/health/policy-and-issues/article1130983.ece|archive-date=25 October 2012}}
Scope of services
Implementation
For nutritional purposes ICDS provides 500 kilocalories (with 12–15 grams of protein) every day to every child from 6 months to 6 years of age.{{cite web|title=Supreme Court Commissioners|url=http://www.sccommissioners.org/schemes/icds|publisher=sccommissioners.org|access-date=22 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090813083519/http://www.sccommissioners.org/schemes/icds|archive-date=13 August 2009|url-status=dead}} For adolescent girls in the age group of 10 to 19, 6 kilograms of food grain is given every months.{{cn|date=July 2023}}
The services of Immunisation, Health Check-up and Referral Services delivered through Public Health Infrastructure under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. UNICEF has provided essential supplies for the ICDS scheme since 1975. World Bank has also assisted with the financial and technical support for the programme. The cost of ICDS programme averages $10–$22 per child a year. The scheme is Centrally sponsored with the state governments contributing up to {{INRConvert|1.00}} per day per child.
Furthermore, in 2008, the GOI adopted the World Health Organization standards for measuring and monitoring the child growth and development, both for the ICDS and the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). These standards were developed by WHO through an intensive study of six developing countries since 1997. They are known as New WHO Child Growth Standard and measure of physical growth, nutritional status and motor development of children from birth to 5 years age.{{cite web|title=The WHO Child Growth Standards|url=https://www.who.int/childgrowth/en/|publisher=World Health Organization|access-date=22 March 2011}}
Challenges
Despite increasing funding over the past three decades, the ICDS fell short of its stated objectives and still faces a number of challenges. Also, though it has widespread coverage, operational gaps mean that service delivery is not consistent in quality and quantity across the country.{{Cite web|date=22 March 2018|title=Early childhood development and nutrition in India|url=https://www.opml.co.uk/projects/early-childhood-development-nutrition-india|access-date=11 June 2020|website=Oxford Policy Management|language=en-GB}}
Impact
By end of 2010, the programme is claiming to reach 80.6 lakh expectant and lactating mothers along with 3.93 crore children (under 6 years of age).{{cite web|title=The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS)|url=http://www.unicef.org/india/media_2640.htm|publisher=UNICEF|access-date=22 March 2011|archive-date=26 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626213241/http://www.unicef.org/india/media_2640.htm|url-status=dead}} There are 6,719 operational projects with 1,241,749 operational Aanganwadi centres. Several positive benefits of the programme have been documented and reported
- A study in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka demonstrated significant improvement in the mental and social development of all children irrespective of their gender.
- A 1992 study of National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development confirmed improvements in birth-weight and infant mortality of Indian children along with improved immunization and nutrition.
- Several studies have shown that ICDS can improve long-term health and educational outcomes of adolescents and adults.{{cite journal | vauthors = Kinra S, Rameshwar Sarma KV, Mendu VV, Ravikumar R, Mohan V, Wilkinson IB, Cockcroft JR, Davey Smith G, Ben-Shlomo Y | display-authors = 6 | title = Effect of integration of supplemental nutrition with public health programmes in pregnancy and early childhood on cardiovascular risk in rural Indian adolescents: long term follow-up of Hyderabad nutrition trial | journal = BMJ | volume = 337 | pages = a605 | date = July 2008 | pmid = 18658189 | pmc = 2500199 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.a605 }}{{cite journal | vauthors = Kinra S, Gregson J, Prabhakaran P, Gupta V, Walia GK, Bhogadi S, Gupta R, Aggarwal A, Mallinson PA, Kulkarni B, Prabhakaran D, Davey Smith G, Radha Krishna KV, Ebrahim S, Kuper H, Ben-Shlomo Y | display-authors = 6 | title = Effect of supplemental nutrition in pregnancy on offspring's risk of cardiovascular disease in young adulthood: Long-term follow-up of a cluster trial from India | journal = PLOS Medicine | volume = 17 | issue = 7 | pages = e1003183 | date = July 2020 | pmid = 32692751 | pmc = 7373266 | doi = 10.1371/journal.pmed.1003183 | doi-access = free }}{{cite journal | vauthors = Nandi A, Behrman JR, Kinra S, Laxminarayan R | title = Early-Life Nutrition Is Associated Positively with Schooling and Labor Market Outcomes and Negatively with Marriage Rates at Age 20-25 Years: Evidence from the Andhra Pradesh Children and Parents Study (APCAPS) in India | journal = The Journal of Nutrition | volume = 148 | issue = 1 | pages = 140–146 | date = January 2018 | pmid = 29378047 | pmc = 6289970 | doi = 10.1093/jn/nxx012 }}{{Cite journal| vauthors = Nandi A, Behrman JB, Laxminarayan R |date=2019-02-15|title=The Impact of a National Early Childhood Development Program on Future Schooling Attainment: Evidence from Integrated Child Development Services in India|url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/703078|journal=Economic Development and Cultural Change|volume=69|issue=1|pages=291–316|doi=10.1086/703078|s2cid=224806490 |issn=0013-0079|url-access=subscription}}{{cite journal | vauthors = Nandi A, Ashok A, Kinra S, Behrman JR, Laxminarayan R | title = Early Childhood Nutrition Is Positively Associated with Adolescent Educational Outcomes: Evidence from the Andhra Pradesh Child and Parents Study (APCAPS) | journal = The Journal of Nutrition | volume = 146 | issue = 4 | pages = 806–813 | date = April 2015 | pmid = 26962175 | pmc = 4807645 | doi = 10.3945/jn.115.223198 }}{{citation overkill|date=July 2023}}
However, World Bank has also highlighted certain key shortcomings of the programme including inability to target the girl child improvements, participation of wealthier and middle-class children more than low-income children and lowest level of funding for the poorest and the most undernourished states of India.{{cite web|title=CHAPTER 2 THE INTEGRATED CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES PROGRAM (ICDS) – ARE RESULTS MEETING EXPECTATIONS?|url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/SOUTHASIAEXT/Resources/223546-1147272668285/undernourished_chapter_2.pdf|publisher=World Bank|access-date=22 March 2011}}
See also
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- [http://www.unicef.org/india/media_2640.htm UNICEF India ICDS] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626213241/http://www.unicef.org/india/media_2640.htm |date=26 June 2012 }}
- [http://ncpcr.gov.in National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development]
- [http://icds.gov.in/ ICDS in Maharashtra]
{{Government Schemes in India}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Child welfare in India
Category:Children's rights instruments
Category:Government agencies established in 1975
Category:Health programmes in India
Category:Government schemes in India