ICDS Scheme 2024-25: History, Objectives, Services, Beneficiaries & Impact

ICDS Scheme:- Under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) initiative, women and children under the age of six receive primary healthcare, preschool education, and food from the Indian government. The UPSC curriculum includes this program under the topic of federal and state welfare programs for the most disadvantaged groups in society.

What is the ICDS Scheme

Launched in 1975, the program seeks to empower mothers and promote the complete development of children. The sponsor of this program is central. The Anganwadi facility is where the scheme mostly operates. Under the Ministry of Women and Child Development is the program.

History of ICDS

• The program’s main goals are the general development of children and the empowerment of mothers. It was launched in 1975. It is a system with central funding.
• The Anganwadi Center is primarily responsible for carrying out the campaign.
• The program is managed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
• The Ministry of Women and Child Development is in charge of overseeing the Umbrella ICDS. 1975 saw its initial introduction.
• The Ministry of Women and Child Development is in charge of the initiative.
• The system covers every district in the nation, making it nationwide in scope. At the moment, the program is known as Anganwadi Services.

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Vision Statement of ICDS Scheme

The ICDS program is an essential government intervention at the federal and state levels that satisfies their global responsibility to reduce malnutrition and enhance children’s nutritional and educational conditions. Among the eight states selected for the comprehensive execution of the ICDS-IV initiative is Jharkhand.

ICDS Scheme Objectives

Under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) program, the following are the main goals:

• The objectives of this initiative are to: 1) enhance the nutritional and health status of children aged 0-6 years;
• 2) establish the groundwork for the child’s proper psychological, physical, and social development;
• 3) lower the incidence of death, morbidity, malnutrition, and school dropout;
• 4) achieve effective policy and implementation coordination amongst the various departments to promote child development; and
• 5) increase the mother’s capacity to care for her child’s normal health and nutritional needs through appropriate nutrition and health education.

ICDS Provisions and Services

The following six services are provided to clients of centrally financed Integrated Child Development Services:

• Front-line staff members of Extra Help with Nutrition (SNP) distribute these services out of Anganwadi centers, which are primarily located in rural regions.
• Health & Nutrition Check-Up
• Immunization
• Non-Formal Education for Children in Pre-School
• Health and Nutrition Education
• Referral services

The Anganwadi centers, which are mainly situated in rural areas, employ frontline staff members who provide these services.

Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP)

The ICDS provides access to supplementary feeding and growth monitoring services, as well as community recognition for expectant or nursing women and children under six. 300 days of additional feeding are provided to the recipients. The program attempts to close the calorie gap between children and women in low-income categories’ average consumption and the recommended amount by providing supplemental feeding.

Health & Nutrition Check-Up

This covers the prenatal and postnatal care of expectant mothers and nursing mothers, as well as the healthcare of children under the age of six. Frequent check-ups, deworming, weight monitoring, immunizations, and basic medication dispensing are among the services provided.

Immunization

Measles, pertussis, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, and tuberculosis are among the diseases that children undergo vaccinations against. Infant and mother mortality have been demonstrated to decrease with tetanus vaccinations given during pregnancy.

Non-Formal Education for Children in Pre-School (PSE)

One could consider this section to be the ICDS scheme’s core. At the Anganwadi centers in towns, rural areas, and urban slums, all of the program’s services come together. This preschool education curriculum, which mostly serves children from disadvantaged backgrounds, aims to provide and create a happy, natural, and exciting environment while emphasizing the inputs that are essential for the best possible growth and development. The early learning portion of the ICDS plays a major role in laying a strong foundation for cumulative lifetime learning and development. It provides the kid with the essential groundwork for elementary education and releases older siblings—especially girls—from the responsibility of watching the younger members of the family, allowing them to go to school.

Also Read:- Delhi Nursery Admission

Significant Features of ICDS

• States and territories around the nation administer the federally sponsored Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme.
• States and UTs are in charge of overseeing and carrying out the ICDS Programme, including any computerization and providing additional nourishment as part of it.
• The relevant States/UTs receive reports of abuse, irregularities, omissions, or deficiencies in the SNP distribution under the ICDS Scheme and the ICDS Programme implementation, and they take appropriate action.
• A report from the state governments or UT administrations is necessary if there are noteworthy issues.
• The appropriate state governments receive complaints about these anomalies and work to resolve them.
• Using the quarterly disclosure of expenditures, the states and the federal government monitor the extensive amount of money that is being spent.
• Review meetings and correspondence are used to address concerns found during visits to the States to streamline the execution of the Scheme and remove any flaws.

Health and Nutrition Education

This component covers the provision of nutrition and health education to women between the ages of 15 and 45. This falls under the umbrella of behavior change communication or BCC. The long-term objective is to empower women to take care of their own health, nutrition, and developmental needs as well as those of their families and children.

Referral Services

Regular physical examinations are the time to report any sickness or condition that requires emergency care to the hospital, primary health center, etc. Furthermore, to enable prompt intervention, Anganwadi staff members receive training in identifying children’s disabilities.

Funding Pattern

• ICDS is a state and territory government-run program that receives federal funding. Before 2005–06, the Indian government supported all input costs, except supplemental nutrition, which was the responsibility of the states. Due to resource constraints, many states were not offering enough supplemental nutrition. A resolution was therefore passed in 2005–06 to help states pay for up to 50% of their supplemental nutrition expenditures, whichever was less.
• Beginning with the 2009–10 fiscal year, the Indian government altered the ICDS financing arrangement between the federal government and the states.
• The Northeastern states and the Centre will now receive 90:10 instead of 50:50 additional nutrients. Concerning other states and UTs, the current 50:50 sharing agreement is maintained. But 90:10 has been the new ratio for all other ICDS components.

Also Read:- Jagananna Smart Town Scheme

FAQ’s

Q. What precise objective does integrated child development services seek to achieve?

Asn- The purpose of integrated child development services is to improve the health and nutrition of children from birth to age six. and to lay the foundation for the child’s best possible development—psychological, physical, and social.

Q. Which age groups are under the purview of ICDS?

Asn- Children under six, expectant and nursing moms, and women between the ages of sixteen and forty-four are the target audience for this plan.

Q. In ICDS, what precisely is AWC?

Ans- Anganwadi centers (AWC) offer basic healthcare to Indian communities. It is a part of the public health care system in India.

Q. Who are the beneficiaries of ICDS?

Ans- Children under the age of six and women who are pregnant or nursing benefit from ICDS (P&LW).

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