Odisha Extends Scheme To Children Of Incarcerated Parents

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has extended the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) to children with incarcerated parents.

The state government has directed district Collectors to identify one anganwadi centre near each prison to extend the benefits of the scheme to such children.

The government has framed guidelines for both children aged 0-6 years who live in jails with incarcerated parents and children of incarcerated parents staying outside jails.

The Orissa High Court had recently directed the government to formulate a detailed scheme for children of prisoners. The HC had said there were around 59 children in Odisha’s jails.