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Women and Child Welfare Schemes in India

The policy for women aims at making them economically independent and self reliant.
Focus is on the following areas, as per the policy.
1. Steps to eliminate violence against women;
2. Ensuring equality in view of legal rights
3. Improving the economic status of women;
4. Appropriate use of media;
5. Increased participation of women in local self-Government
6. Enhancing community participation in Government activities (involvement of NonGovernmental Organisations)
Women constitute 48 per cent of the total population of the country. They suffer many
disadvantages as compared to men in literary rates, labour participation rates and
earnings. The development of women has been receiving attention of the Government of
India from the First Plan. But it was treated as a subject of welfare and clubbed together
with the welfare of the disadvantaged groups like destitute, disabled, aged, etc. In 1953,
the Central Social Welfare Board was set up which acts as an Apex Body at the Centre to
promote voluntary action at various levels, especially at the grassroots, to take up
welfare-related activities for women and children.
The Second to Fifth Plans continued this strategy, besides giving priority to womens
education, and launching measures to improve material and child health services,
supplementary feeding for children and expectant and nursing mothers.
In the Sixth Plan, there was a shift in the approach from welfare to development of
women. The Sixth Plan adopted a multi-disciplinary approach with special emphasis on
the three core sectors of health, education and employment.
The Seventh Plan stressed on raising their economic and social status and bringing them
into the mainstream of national development. One of the significant step in this direction
was to identify/promote the Beneficiary Oriented Schemes in various developmental
sector which extended direct benefits to women.
The strategy also included the generation of both skilled and unskilled employment
through proper education and vocational training. The Eighth Plan ensured that the
benefits of development to women should flow from other development sectors and
enable women to function as equal partners and participants in the development
process.
The Ninth Plan made two important changes in the strategy of development of women.
The first was the Empowerment of Women. Its aim was to create an enabling
environment where women could freely exercise their rights both within and outside
home, and are equal partners along with men.
The second was the convergence of existing services available in both women-specific
and women-related sectors To this effect, a special strategy of Womens Component
Plan was adopted through which not less than 30 per cent of funds/benefits now flow to
women from all the general development sectors.
For social and economic development of women, the Centre has set up the
Department of Women and Child Development which has been implementing
the following schemes:

1. Swayamsidha:
Swayamsidha is an integrated scheme for the development and empowerment of women
through self-help groups. It covers services, access to micro-credit and promotes microenterprises.
2. Swashakti Project:
Swashakti Project aims at increasing womens access to resources for better quality of
life through the use of time reduction devices, by providing health and education
services and by imparting skills to women for income generating activities.
3. Child Development Services Scheme (CDS):
The scheme started in 1975 with the objective to give special coverage to slums in urban
areas. The scheme also envisages delivery of an integrated package of services
consisting of immunization, health check-ups, nutrition and health education and
refreshment services to child and pregnant women.
4. Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women:
It provides new skills and knowledge to poor assetless women in agriculture, animal
husbandry, dairying, fisheries, sericulture, handlooms, handicrafts and khadi and village
industry sectors of employment.
5. Swavlamban:
This scheme provides training and skills to women to enable them to obtain employment
or become self-employed. The trades in which training is imparted include computer
programming, medical transcription, electronic assembling, electronics, radio and TV
repairs,

garment

making,

handloom

weaving,

handicrafts,

secretarial

practice,

embroidery and community health.

6. Creche/Day Care Centres for the Children of Working and Ailing Mothers:
It aims at providing day care services to children (0-5 years) of parents whose income
does not exceed Rs. 1,800 per month. The services include sleeping and day care
facilities, recreation, supplementary nutrition, immunisation and medicine.
7. Hostels for Working Women:
Under this scheme, financial assistance is provided for construction and expansion of
hostel buildings for working women. It also includes provisions for safe and affordable
accommodation to working women (single or married), those getting training for
employment and girl students studying in professional courses.
8. Swadhar:
This scheme provides integrated services to women without support from their families
such as widows living at Vrindavan and Kashi; prisoners released from jail; survivors of
natural calamities; women/girls rescued from brothels and other places; victims of sexual
crimes, etc. The scheme includes such services as food, clothing, shelters, health care,
counselling and legal aid and rehabilitation through education awareness, skill formation
and behavioural training.
9. Rashtriya Mahila Kosh:
The National Credit Fund for Women is meant to facilitate credit support or micro-finance
to poor women to start such income generating schemes as agriculture, dairying, shopkeeping, vending and handicrafts.

10. Welfare of Street Children:

With the objective of weaning away street children from a life of deprivation and
vagrancy and rehabilitating them, An Integrated Programme for Street Children is being
implemented with a wide range of initiatives like 24 hour drop-in shelters, night shelters,
nutrition, healthcare, sanitation, hygiene, safe drinking water, education, recreational
facilities and protection against abuse and exploitation.
Currently, 190 organizations have been operating in 22 states benefiting 1.58 lakh street
children. The special initiative of the Child-line Service, a toll free telephone service is
available to children in distress which responds to the emergency needs of the children
and provides referral service. This facility is now operating in 34 cities.
Child welfare programmes
Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) being implemented by
Ministry of Women and Child Development is the worlds largest programme aimed at
enhancing the health, nutrition and learning opportunities of infants, young children (O-6
years) and their mothers. The services are provided at a centre called the Anganwadi,
which literally means a courtyard play centre, a childcare centre located within the
village itself. The packages of services provided are:
-

Supplementary nutrition,

Immunization,

Health check-up

Referral services,

Pre-school non-formal education and

Nutrition and health education

Reproductive and Child Health Programme

Being implemented by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the programme
provides effective maternal and child health care, micronutrient interventions for
vulnerable groups, reproductive health services for adolescent etc. Some important
programmes cover
-

immunization for children for DTP, Polio and Tetanus Toxoid for women

Vitamin A administration

Iron and folic Acid for pregnant women.

This programme integrates all family welfare and women and child health services with
the explicit objective of providing beneficiaries with need based, client centered,
demand driven, and high quality integrated RCH services. The strategy for the RCH
programme shifts the policy emphasis from achieving demographic targets to meeting
the health needs of women and children.
Pulse Polio Immunization Programme being implemented by the Ministry of Health
and Family Welfare covers all children blow five years. It is a massive programme covers
166 million children in every round of National Immunization Day.

The other

immunization programmes include Hepatitis B, DPT and other routine immunization.

Other notable programmes for child health include, Universal immunization programme,
control of deaths due to acute respiratory infections, control of diarrhoeal diseases,
provision of essential new-born care to address the issue of the neonates, prophylactic
programmes for the prevention and treatment of two micronutrient deficiencies relating

to Vitamin A and iron, Anemia control programme, Border District Cluster Strategy and
Integrated Management of Neo-natal and childhood illness.
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan being implemented by the Department of Education provides
for school infrastructure and quality improvement in education of the children. The
specific objectives are,
-

All children to be in school

Universal retention by 2010

Bridging all gender and social gaps at primary stage by 2007 and at elementary

education level by 2010.

The Government of India is committed to realizing the goal of universalization of
elementary education by 2010.

Under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), the National

flagship programme, the Government aims to provide free and compulsory elementary
education to all children in the 6-14 age group by 2010.
Mid-day meal Scheme is also one of the important schemes of the Government to aim
universal enrollment and retention of children. Under the programmed nutrition snacks
are provided to children attending schools..
Integrated Programme for Juvenile Justice
The programme is being implemented by the Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment with a view to providing carte to children in difficult circumstances and
children in conflict with the law through Government institutions and through NGOs.
Some special features of the scheme areas:
-

Establishment of a National Advisory Board on Juvenile Justice.

Creation of a Juvenile Justice Fund.

Training, orientation and sensitization of judicial, administrative police and

NGOs responsible for implementation of JJ Act.

-

Institutional are shall be used but only as a last measure by enlarging the

range of suitable alternatives.

-

Financial assistance to bring about a qualitative improvement in the existing

infrastructure.
-

Expansion of non-institutional services such as sponsorship, foster care,

probation etc. as and an alternate to institutional care.

Child helpline
Childhelpline is a toll free telephone service (1098) which anyone can call for assistance
in the interest of children. Being run with the support of Women and child welfare
Ministry is working in 72 cities across the country. The Shishu Greh Scheme is also being
implemented by the ministry to promote adoptions within the country and to ensure
minimum standards in the care of abandoned/orphaned/destitute children. Grant-in-Aid
upto a ceiling of Rs. 6 lakh is provided per unit of 10 children in a Shishu Greh.
The National Rural Health Mission, a scheme of health Ministry seeks to provide
effective healthcare to rural population including large population of children throughout
the country with special focus on 18 States, which have weak public health indicators
and/or raise public spending on health from 0.9% of GDP to 2-3% of GDP. It aims to
undertake architectural correction of the health system to enable it to effectively handle
increased allocations as promised under the National Common Minimum Programme and

promote policies that strengthen public health management and service delivery in the
country.
Elimination of Child Labour is being implemented by the Ministry of Labour which
sanctions projects for rehabilitation of working children and for elimination of child
labour.

Under the project based Action Plan of the Policy, National Child Labour

Projects (NCLPs) have been set up in different areas to rehabilitate child labour. A major
activity undertaken under the NCLP is the establishment of special schools to provide
non-formal education, vocational training, supplementary nutrition etc. to children
withdrawn from employment. 150 Child Labour Projects have so far been sanctioned for
rehabilitating children in the most endemic areas and 1.5 lakh children have already
been mainstreamed in the special schools.
Prevention of Offences against Children
After wide consultations a draft Bill for offences Against Children has been
prepared and circulated to the State Governments for their comments and views. After
obtaining the comments of the State governments and concerned Ministries and
Departments a draft has bee prepared and circulated to the concerned Ministries and
Departments for their comments and use.