India’s future: A comprehensive exploration of early childhood development and education

Dipak Kurmi

(The writer can be reached at dipaknewslive@gmail.com.)

Investing in India’s children is crucial, especially considering the nation’s emphasis on the demographic dividend, education, and employment. However, the realm of early childhood education has consistently lacked adequate investment and exploration over the years. Unfortunately, it is often diminished as mere child’s play or confined to the domestic sphere, possibly due to its historical association with women’s responsibilities. The government’s recent attention to women-led development, as evident in the survey jointly conducted by the Ministries of Women and Child Development and Labour on January 30, signifies a positive shift. This survey addresses the importance of care work and early childhood as integral components of the essential tasks involved in governing a country.

Placing emphasis on the earlier stages of the life cycle, the case for heightened investment in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) is fundamentally grounded in recognizing human resources as the cornerstone of a nation, with early childhood forming the foundation of individual development. Gradually but steadily, the developmental efforts of the Indian state have aligned with parental aspirations for education. This commitment initially targeted achieving first access, surpassing a 100% gross enrollment ratio at the primary level. Subsequently, the focus has shifted towards ensuring quality, as evidenced by an increased emphasis on assessing learning outcomes. There is now a growing acknowledgment that India’s young learners face challenges, with a considerable number of third-grade students struggling to read second-grade texts or perform basic subtraction.

This shift in perspective has driven a renewed focus on the earlier stages of the life cycle, specifically targeting children under six. This has resulted in strategic initiatives like the Ministry of Education’s National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN) Bharat, which aims to enhance foundational literacy and numeracy. Additionally, the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) has introduced “Poshan Bhi Padhai Bhi” to elevate the quality of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) through the Anganwadi system. These endeavours reflect a comprehensive approach to addressing the critical developmental phase of young children.

The commitment made in the interim Budget of 2024 to accelerate the enhancement of Saksham Anganwadis and extend Ayushman Bharat services to Anganwadi workers, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA), and helpers is a promising development.

In 2023, there was a notable threefold increase in the allocation for teaching-learning materials, rising from around Rs 140 crore to Rs 420 crore annually. This budgetary boost is intended to cater to the needs of approximately 14 lakh Anganwadi centers, serving the underprivileged population of eight crore children under six in India. Providing context, the budgeted expenditure for centrally sponsored schemes in the 2024–25 fiscal year stands at Rs 5.01 lakh crore. Within this, the Anganwadi system is granted about Rs 21,200 crore, surpassing allocations for rural roads (Rs 12,000 crore) and irrigation (Rs 11,391 crore) but falling short of the National Education Mission (Rs 37,500 crore) and the National Health Mission (Rs 38,183 crore). Meanwhile, the Department of Higher Education receives approximately Rs 47,619 crore, catering to around four crore enrolled learners, predominantly from the more privileged sections of Indian society.

Recent research underscores the need for increased allocation and expenditure by both the Centre and the States in support of the Anganwadi system. Through quasi-experimental impact evaluations utilizing existing survey data, it has been demonstrated that children attending Anganwadis exhibit improvements in cognitive and motor skills compared to their counterparts, effectively reducing gender and income-related disparities. A 2020 study indicates that children exposed to the Anganwadi system from ages zero to three tend to complete 0.1–0.3 more grades in school. While evidence at the individual level is accumulating, the broader macroeconomic implications of these findings remain underexplored. To make informed decisions on budget allocation for infrastructure, capacity building, materials, and staffing, it is crucial to align micro-level details with macro-level considerations, translating amounts from paise to lakhs and crores. Accurate estimates are needed to gauge the potential contributions to GDP resulting from the established individual benefits of robust Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE). These benefits span improvements in women’s physical and mental health, life expectancy, public health expenditure, children’s educational achievements, as well as their physical and mental well-being. Additionally, the broader societal impact, including the potential mitigation of social unrest, should be factored into the decision-making process.

The Perry Preschool study conducted by Nobel Laureate Heckman revealed that individuals who received high-quality Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) developed into less violent adults. The study suggests that the cultivation of robust socio-emotional skills during early childhood may even play a role in preventing later instances of student suicide.

A compelling necessity exists for comprehensive and rigorous research in the Indian context, building upon the groundwork laid by esteemed scholars who have delved into the macroeconomic and social consequences of early childhood development. To shape policies grounded in evidence, it becomes imperative to discern the opportunity cost associated with the insufficient allocation of material resources, funds, and top-tier talent to the early childhood sector. While international studies, notably from institutions like the University of Chicago and Yale University, suggest a 13% annual return on investment for every dollar spent on early childhood development, this data pertains to the American context. India requires parallel longitudinal studies to explore the impact of early childhood care, encompassing the Anganwadi system, which stands as the world’s largest public provisioning system for Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).

By the time children born in 2024 reach adulthood in 2047, marking India’s 100th year of independence and the targeted year for Viksit Bharat, they will have completed five years of their adult journey. Drawing inspiration from the trajectory followed by developing nations that transformed into developed ones, such as the Asian Tigers, it is evident that the key lies in investing in human development early on. The sooner this investment begins, the smoother the path towards progress. If our aim is to empower India’s women in the workforce and ensure the thriving development of the nation’s children, the clear direction is to invest significantly in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE). It’s not just child’s play; it’s an essential investment in the future.