After mohalla clinics, the Delhi government has set up 101 “mohalla playschools” or “modern anganwadi hub centres” for children from the economically disadvantaged families.

The centres are part of the Delhi government’s ongoing reforms in the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme under which the anganwadi centres provide food, preschool education and primary health care to children up to six years of age and their mothers.

Delhi education minister Manish Sisodia, who also looks after the women and child department, inaugurated the centres on Monday.

“We recognised that care for children starts from the time when they are in their mothers’ wombs and learning starts from the day they are born. Our 10,000 plus anganwadi centres are the platform to provide this care and learning. In a way, these hubs are ‘mohalla play schools’ for the children of the common people who can’t afford play schools otherwise,” he said.

The centres, which will cater to children aged between 3 and 6, have been created by clubbing two or three existing angawadis in multiple locations, including Okhla, Kondli and Patparganj.

The centres were inaugurated by legislators of the respective areas. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government is also planning to come up with a new curriculum to make these children school-ready.

“Poor early learning experience in early years is the beginning of the learning gap that gets further perpetuated as children progress to higher classes. Government school children start formal school in class 1 and are already at a disadvantage compared to those who go to playschools that use various tools for cognitive development during early childhood,” Sisodia said.

Earlier this month, the government had trained anganwadi workers under its new early childhood education (ECE) curriculum. “The new curriculum was developed in collaboration with ECE experts and has many new learning features and techniques based on latest research on early childhood learning and development,” a government statement read.

(Source: HT Education)