Inside Maharashtra’s Women’s Jails, Rachna Narwekar Is Creating Safe Childhoods Through Prison Crèches (VIDEO)

Colaba resident Rachna Narwekar has been quietly transforming the lives of those society often overlooks — incarcerated mothers and their young children living inside prisons with them. To support this vulnerable group, Narwekar started the Nanhe Kadam Prison Crèches three years ago at Byculla Women's Jail. “Our mission is simple: to create a safe and nurturing environment not only for children living inside prisons, but also for the women who are often vulnerable and overlooked. We aim to take them from helplessness to hope by giving children the chance to experience a real childhood, while empowering women with opportunities to showcase their skills and live with dignity,” explains Narwekar.

The crèche programme is part of Rachna’s Funclub Foundation and its  young beneficiaries are between zero and six years old as well as children of the prison department’s staff members. Once they turn six, under the Supreme Court guidelines, the young ones are not allowed to stay inside the prison and are sent either to remand homes, family members, or an organisation. 

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Approximately 250 children and 1,300 women have benefitted from the Nanhe Kadam Prison Crèches

“Our programme is a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country and for the first time, the children were moved out of the lock-up area and into a dedicated classroom space provided by the prison department, where they could spend their day in a safe and stimulating environment,” explains the founder and director of the NGO.

Today, their routine resembles that of any other child. They come out in the morning, attend lessons, listen to stories, participate in music sessions, and engage in sensory exploration activities. “We have been given access to green spaces within prison compounds, allowing children time to play outdoors and interact with nature,” she adds. These crèches have given these children the opportunity to experience a sense of normalcy and childhood — something they would otherwise miss while spending entire days confined inside lock-up areas with their mothers. The organisation now has crèches at Nashik, Nagpur, Thane, Kalyan, and soon at Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar too. 

The organisation’s prison crèches operate with a dedicated team comprising a teacher, assistant teacher, caretaker, and social worker at each centre. These teams undergo weekly online training sessions led by a teacher coordinator to ensure a consistent and evolving approach to childcare and early learning.

Over the last three years, the organisation has developed a specialised curriculum tailored to the unique emotional and developmental needs of children living inside prisons. Rather than focusing solely on conventional academics, the curriculum prioritises life skills, empathy, daily routines, manners, and emotional development.

The NGO observed that many children initially struggled with emotional regulation and often experienced behavioural outbursts. In response, the curriculum evolved to better address their social-emotional, cognitive, and physical development. Special emphasis is also placed on developing fine and gross motor skills, particularly for children between the ages of zero and six.

Alongside its work with children, the organisation is also supporting incarcerated women and youth by helping them build employability skills. Through a pilot programme involving 100 participants, the NGO is training women and youth in areas such as interview presentation, communication, and CV preparation to improve their chances of securing employment after release.

Deb Mukherjee, Founder, Moi Soi

Deb Mukherjee, Founder, Moi Soi, shares, “Most social impact work stays at the surface. Rachna’s Funclub Foundation goes where few dare to: into prisons, working with children of incarcerated mothers  through Nanhe Kadam. The idea is simple and powerful— a child should not pay for their parent’s circumstances. They are quietly changing lives in places most of us never think about. That’s rare, and that’s why it matters.” 

If you'd like to get in touch with the above NGO, you can email at [email protected] or call at +91 98208 76532 

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