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The year 1975 witnessed the inception of a government-sponsored programme entitled Anganwadi. The word Anganwadi in the English language means 'courtyard shelter'. It is derived from the Hindi word 'Angan' which refers to the courtyard of a house. Angan is a rural Indian term for a place of assembly, where people greet, discuss, and socialize their matters. This section is viewed as the fundamental section of the house and is also considered a sacred place. 

Anganwadi is a development programme centred on the child and mother care development targeted in rural locations. As part of the Integrated Child Development Services program, the primary objective behind the establishment of Anganwadi is to combat child hunger and malnutrition deeply rooted in our society. These issues have been haunting our society for ages and continue to impart consequences.

A typical Anganwadi centre provides primary health care facilities in a village setting. It is part of the Indian public health care system. Primary health care activities covered under the programme are nutrition and supplementation, education through pre-school activities, and contraceptive counselling and supply. Interestingly, the centres are used as depots for basic medicines, Oral Rehydration Salts, and contraceptives. In addition, they provide supplementary nutrition, non-formal pre-school education, nutrition, and health education, immunization, and health check-up. 

Now coming to the educational sphere, the primary aim of Pre-school education is to create a learning-induced environment for children covering the age group of 3-6 years. Education is imparted through the medium of play that promotes the social, cognitive, emotional, physical, and aesthetic development of a child by simultaneously nurturing them for primary schooling. Anganwadi's educational programme is not limited to academics but moves beyond by undertaking a holistic approach to impart education in the true sense.