Why Should India Extend The Scope Of The Two-Year Maternity Bill?

We are today a couple of days in the euphoria that surrounds the strongest return of the titular government. It seems as if the whole nation is on the verge of a positive and optimistic impulse, while the government is ready to reignite its reform agenda. It seemed like the perfect moment to articulate my thoughts on how, over the next five years, India should focus on obtaining its demographic dividend by rethinking the historical policies it implemented.

Early childhood investment for the economy

I speak specifically of the 160 million children under the age of five, a number that the CWA (Association for the Welfare of Children and Women) reported as part of their effort to build the framework of early childhood. Well invested, these children will be the ones who will take India to the future as the strongest economy. China fell back with its one-child policy: most of Europe experienced a decrease in its population in the last two decades and has corrected it in the last 5-6 years.

The opportunity of India is in two key areas and we also do it well, we are able to take advantage of the short- and long-term benefits for the economy through the income of two generations (Professor Heckman's research on defenders 0-3). The first is: with mothers who have entered the labor force, a huge opportunity for participation in the workforce, in the Indian workforce by 24% and in the second, kids getting the right skills to succeed in school and life.

Revolving the laws in the new urban context

I am not one of those who defend that the participation of the mother in the first years is not critical; No doubt, the mother stayed with the child for the first six months and the baby will be breastfed. However, in the future, urban parents do not have the "people" that help the child properly. There is no manual on how to provide care and education in these early years and many urban parents have children alone, only the cost pressure and the need for women more time off from the workforce. We still have to fully understand the ramifications of a child growing up in an adult environment and not with a group of peers who learn so much.

In this five-year period, the government should think about how to make its law of the Maternity Act (MBA) more effective. The MBA was promoted and applauded as one of the most liberal acts that place India in third place in terms of the benefits of motherhood. The bill in its intention was correct: allow mothers to stay at home for six months with their child in the crucial period, as long as they are adopted and are in their care and one of the most critical care criteria is provided for women.

By: Preeti Narula

Content: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/why-india-must-expand-the-scope-of-the-two-year-old-maternity-bill/articleshow/69579412.cms