Early investment in children, the key to India’s future

The focus needs to be on the first 3,000 days of life and a national mission on early childhood care and development.................................................................

India’s aspiration to become a Viksit Bharat 

and a $30 trillion economy by 2047 is ambitious and desirable. . It demands 

• sustained, 
• evidence-based investments over the next two decades, particularly in human capital formation. 

About the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE)

• Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) in the Indian context is generally defined as the care and education of children from birth to eight years. It includes:
• Early stimulation programmes through crèches/homes stimulation for 0-3 year olds.
• Early childhood education (ECE) programmes for 3-6 year olds (as seen in anganwadis, balwadis, nurseries, preschools, kindergartens, preparatory schools, etc.).
• Early Primary Education Programmes as part of schooling for 6-8 year olds.
• Government of India adopted the National Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Policy in 2013.
• National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and National Curriculum Framework for Foundational Stage (NCF-FS) 2022 have recognized the critical role of ECCE in the country. 
  • The NCF-FS institutionalized guidelines specifically tailored for fostering high-quality ECCE for 3-6 years and the age group of 0-3 years.
• Aadharshila, the National Curriculum for ECCE 2024 address this need.
  • Objective of the National ECCE Curriculum 2024 (3-6 years) is to improve the quality of early childhood education transacted at the Anganwadi Centre, by prioritising competency-based lesson plans and activities, covering all learning domains.
• 85% of brain development occurs before the age of 6 years.

LEFT BEHIND ?  early childhood care and development (ECCD)

Infrastructure, manufacturing, digital innovation and ease of doing business dominate public discourse,

 and there is often mention of health and education in various policy discussions.

a critical link remains largely missing: 

a concrete road map and focused and systematic investment in early childhood care and development (ECCD). 

An investment in ECCD 

FIRST 2 YEARS OF BABY 

IT IS  a strategic economic investment. From conception to the second birthday of a child — the first 1,000 days of life — have been considered most important for the growth and development of children. 

This phase has been recognised 

by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF as a crucial ‘window of opportunity’ for shaping a child’s future well-being and potential. 

The next six years which follow (three to eight years) 

constitute approximately another 2,000 days. Thus, the first 3,000 days shape 

• brain architecture, 
• physical health, 
• cognitive ability, 
• emotional regulation and social skills.

 

The early capabilities developed during this period determine a child’s 

• capacity to learn, 
• adapt and contribute productively to society as an adult.

WHY ? 

Children who are well-nourished, emotionally secure and cognitively stimulated are more likely to 

• complete education, 
• acquire skills, 
• participate meaningfully in the workforce 
• earn higher incomes.

At the national level

such investments reduce future spending on 

• health care, 
• remedial education 
• social protection, while expanding the tax base through a healthier and more productive workforce. 

These efforts can 

lift families 

• out of poverty 
• help them move upward in the economic ladder.
• social mobility
•  inclusive growth. 

LEARN from many countries including the 

United States, the Nordic countries, particularly Finland, and also from South Korea support these arguments. 

However, BY ECCD Their most visible benefits emerge over 10 to 20 years later

Build upon the existing foundation

India’s experience offers important lessons

 

child and newborn survival

Over the past five decades, the country has made notable progress in child and newborn survival. This did not occur by chance. 

Programmes such 

• Child Survival and Safe Motherhood initiative (1992), 
• the Reproductive and Child Health programme (1997), 
• their consolidation under the National Health Mission- significantly reduced infant and under-five mortality, improved immunisation coverage and addressed severe malnutrition. 

(ICDS) AND OTHERS SCHEME 

 The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), 1975, later restructured as Mission Saksham Anganwadi and POSHAN 2.0,

 laid the foundation for nutrition and early care, especially among poorer households. 

State governments also contributed through innovations and delivery models.

LIMITATION OF OLD SCHEMES 

keeping children alive 

BUT most interventions have been narrowly focused and fragmented. 

The primary emphasis has remained on survival — keeping children alive — rather than enabling them to reach their full developmental potential.

 leaving out vast sections 

Moreover, ECCD initiatives have largely been targeted at children within government safety nets, leaving out vast sections of middle- and higher-income families. 

Children from middle and even upper income households increasingly 

• face obesity, 
• physical inactivity, 
• excessive screen exposure, 
• delayed social skills, 
• emotional difficulties and 
• behavioural problems.

A case for early interventions

WHAT RESEARCH IS SAYING ? 

Research in epigenetics shows that 

• health, 
• nutrition, 
• stress and 
• environmental exposures even before conception / विचार या योजना बनाने की प्रक्रिया 
• can influence gene expression 
• and long-term health outcomes.

Parental obesity, substance use, poor nutrition and chronic stress 

increase a child’s risk of 

• non-communicable diseases, 
• developmental delays, and 
• metabolic disorders. 

During the first 1,000 days 

most neural connections are formed, and nearly 80%-85% of brain development occurs. Deprivation or neglect at this stage is often irreversible.

Knowlwdge or Guidence 

this is also when children spend almost all their time within families, with minimal engagement with formal systems beyond immunisation or illness care. 

In the digital age, many parents rely on social media for guidance, much of which is commercially driven or poorly informed. 

Credible and structured support on early stimulation, responsive care-giving, play and emotional nurturing remain scarce. 

Formal interventions typically begin only around 30-36 months, through Anganwadi centres or private preschools. 

While important, these come late.

What is needed is an integrated ECCD framework 

that brings together from conception to eight years of age

• health, 
• nutrition, 
• early learning, 
• emotional wellbeing and 
• care-giving, . .

First, India needs structured premarital and pre-conception counselling 

for young adults and couples

 focusing on nutrition, mental health, lifestyle choices and intergenerational impacts. 

Second, parents must  with knowledge about early stimulation and responsive care-giving. 

Simple, low-cost activities — 

• talking, 
• reading, 
• singing, 
• playing and 
• emotional engagement — can profoundly shape brain development from the earliest weeks of life. 

For example, stories 

can be read and told to a baby as young as four weeks. Doing so, accelerates formation of neural connections in the brain and future learning capacity. 

.

Third, parents and families should be trained 

for  basic growth monitoring and age-appropriate developmental milestones.

through periodic, simple sessions. 

Early identification of delays can be among the most cost-effective interventions for infants and toddlers, rivalled only by immunisation.

Fourth, India must invest far more in quality care and learning systems 

for children aged two to five, a phase critical for preventing undernutrition and obesity and for shaping life-long habits related to health and emotional regulation.

Fifth, education, nutrition and health systems must break out of silos / dismantling barriers 

• Children need learning, not just schooling; 
• nutrition for life, not just feeding; 
• well-being, not ritualistic check-ups. 

Schools, as the most widely accepted institutional platform, should evolve into integrated hubs for learning, health and nutrition.

Sixth, preconception health and the first 3,000 days 

must become part of a nationwide social conversation, extending beyond clinics into homes, workplaces and communities. 

Every teacher in every school in India, too needs training in child growth and development beyond academics.

Finally, schools should engage 

parents as partners, while non-profit organisations, philanthropic institutions, and corporate social responsibility initiatives must help build a supportive ECCD ecosystem.

Need for a citizen-led movement

India’s future will not be determined by what it promises its children, but by what it invests in them during their earliest years.

 A citizen-led movement for 

• child growth, 
• learning and 
• development — supported by the state and owned by society — may well be the missing link in India’s journey to becoming a truly developed nation. 

different Ministries

These actions would require effective and functional coordination between different Ministries, especially the Union 

• Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 
• Ministry of Education and 
• Ministry of Women and Child Development

 To formalise and ensure a road map, it can be implemented as an inter-ministerial plan or as an overarching national mission on early childhood care and development.