A crèche is a facility that enables parents to leave their children while they are at work and where children are provided stimulating environment for their holistic development. Crèches are designed to provide group care to children, usually up to 3 years of age, who need care, guidance, and supervision away from their homes during the day. Crèche provides daycare facilities for children (6 months’ to 3 years) of working mothers in the community. It improves the nutrition and health status of children and promotes the physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development (Holistic Development) of children. Crèches are to educate and empower parents /caregivers for better child care blocks and attach high priority to the program.

The project aims at extending community-based Creches in close vicinity of the dwelling or workplace of the mother, to ensure accessible day-care facility to the children, with adequate focus on their nutritional development and Early Childhood Cognitive Development, promoting their financial empowerment.

Presently, we are working as the Implementation Agency for the establishment and management of 60 Crèches in the Jhumpura Block of Keonjhar District. The creche extends daycare facilities to children aged between 6 months to 3 years to ensure their Early Childhood Care and Development and eradication of Malnutrition. The program envisioned to ensure healthy physical, mental and social development of the children, whose both parents are employed on daily wage labours and the child is at the risk of having a ignored childhood, with poor nutritional, physical and mental development.