Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Monday, 22 June 2026, urged parents across the state to enrol three-year-olds in Anganwadi centres as the statewide Shala Praveshotsav gets under way from 23 to 25 June. Posting on X in Gujarati, Patel described the three-day drive as an occasion to embrace knowledge and education 'with heartfelt joy', and said the event would create lifelong memories for families whose children enter Anganwadis for the first time.

Context

In his post, CM Patel made a pointed appeal: 'જે બાળકોને ત્રણ વર્ષ થઈ ગયા છે, તેમને આંગણવાડીમાં પ્રવેશ ચોક્કસ કરાવો' — 'Children who have turned three must definitely be enrolled in Anganwadis.' He stressed that Anganwadis are not merely play spaces but structured environments where children receive pre-primary education, nutrition and healthcare, adding that the government has 'fully focused' on their holistic development. The post was tagged #AnganwadiPraveshotsav.

The Shala Praveshotsav is an annual Gujarat government initiative that mobilises officials, teachers and community leaders to personally accompany children to school or Anganwadi centres on the first day of the enrolment drive, turning admission into a public celebration rather than a bureaucratic exercise.

Policy Backdrop

Gujarat launched its first statewide Shala Praveshotsav in 2003 to address primary-school dropout and non-enrolment. The Anganwadi component was added after 2015 to capture children in the 3–6 age group before they reach Class 1. Anganwadi centres operate under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), a central scheme running since 1975 that funds early childhood care, supplementary nutrition and preschool education at the village level.

The drive now carries additional policy weight following the National Education Policy 2020, which introduced a dedicated early-childhood care and education (ECCE) component and directed states to strengthen Anganwadis for children aged 3–6. Gujarat has aligned the Praveshotsav with its effort to meet NEP 2020 targets for foundational literacy and numeracy by 2025–26.

Stakeholders and Impact

The drive directly affects preschool-age children, their parents — particularly in rural and semi-urban Gujarat — and the state's network of Anganwadi workers who serve as frontline facilitators. For families in villages, the Praveshotsav is often the first formal point of contact with the state's education and nutrition infrastructure.

Similar enrolment festivals have been adopted by other states seeking to integrate Anganwadi records with primary-school admission systems, making Gujarat's model a reference point for early-childhood policy across India. The emphasis on Anganwadis as centres of nutrition and health — not just learning — reflects a broader push to reduce child malnutrition alongside improving school-readiness.

What's Next

District-level enrolment figures from the 23–25 June drive are expected to be released after 25 June 2026, and education officials are likely to present state-level aggregates to the Chief Minister's office shortly thereafter. Observers will also watch for any announcements tied to Gujarat's 2026–27 state budget regarding Anganwadi infrastructure upgrades or expanded nutrition allocations. CM Patel's public call signals that the state intends to use this year's Praveshotsav to push Anganwadi enrolment numbers higher, setting a baseline ahead of the NEP 2020 foundational-stage assessment cycle.