Keeping the future of India healthy

Anganwadi Centers in India

Anganwadi Centers (AWCs) play a vital role in rural India, acting as a cornerstone for early childhood care, education, and health services. In areas where access to healthcare and education is often limited, AWCs provide essential services to pregnant women, lactating mothers, and children 5 years and under. They serve three main functions:

Preschool Education: AWCs provide foundational education for children from the age of three, covering basic literacy and numeracy.

Immunization: AWCs ensure timely vaccinations for children, safeguarding their health.

Nutrition: The primary role of AWCs is to deliver daily nutritional support, making them the world’s largest provider of mid-day meals. By integrating education, health, and nutrition, AWCs help improve child development outcomes.

Nutrition and hygiene go hand in hand

With mid-day meals, AWCs make a huge contribution to improved nutrition for children across India. However, we often forget that without proper hygiene, nutrition is severely compromised. The food may be provided, but those efforts might be undermined by diarrhea and poor absorption.

Without proper hygiene, nutrition is severely compromised

Handwashing with soap is essential for improving children's nutrition by preventing the spread of bacteria and viruses that cause illnesses like diarrhea and respiratory infections. These diseases hinder nutrient absorption, leading to malnutrition even when food is sufficient. Malnutrition at this stage can lead to stunted growth, developmental delays, and long-term health issues, affecting their ability to learn and thrive later in life. Poor hygiene during food preparation and feeding increases infection risks, weakening the immune system and creating a cycle of poor health and undernutrition.

What is the problem?

Access to water v/s Access to handwashing

Access to water through a single-hand pump or well is often mistaken for adequate handwashing access. But consistent handwashing requires multiple, clean, and functional sinks. Children having to wait for a sahika to take them outside simply to wash hands is inconvenient, and discourages regular washing. Unfortunately, the limited resources of AWCs make installing multiple piped sinks challenging.

How do we solve this problem?

Clean and Functional sinks in the classroom.

It’s not enough to provide only a well or a hand pump.
Safety requires hand washing in more places and more times. It needs to start with increased access to handwashing  at vital locations—especially right inside the classroom and near the eating area of the children.

How CSR Foundations Can Make a Difference?

By strengthening the handwashing infrastructure in AWCs, CSRs can help children wash their hands consistently and cultivate a sustainable handwashing habit with soap.

CSRs can take part in multiple important activities:
Funding Handwashing Stations: install durable, child-friendly handwashing stations at all vital locations.
Training and Awareness Campaigns:
Run hygiene camps with children and sevikas/sahikas to teach them the importance of handwashing.