The conference featured speaker sessions and panel discussions on strengthening early childhood education systems, reducing administrative burdens on frontline workers, using technology to support children and families, and translating evidence into large-scale impact.
Among the distinguished speakers and guests were Dr. M. Srinivas, Member, NITI Aayog; Arti Ahuja, Former Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India; Amanda Devercelli, Former Global Early Childhood Development Head, World Bank Group; Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, Chairperson, M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation; Radhika Jha, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India; Dr. Dinesh Arora, Principal Specialist at the Asian Development Bank; and Dr. Abhijeet Singh, Professor at the Stockholm School of Economics and Board Member (Education), J-PAL.
They were joined by Dr. Shena Aggarwal, Special Secretary-cum-Director, Department of Social Security, Women and Child Development, Government of Punjab; Dr. Mrinalini Darswal, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Women and Child Development, Government of Odisha; and senior officials from the Women and Child Development departments of Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Andhra Pradesh. Leaders from OpenAI, TRYST at IIT Bombay and SIRA also participated. Rocket Learning’s co-founders Azeez Gupta, Namya Mahajan, Siddhant Sachdeva and Utsav Kheria were among the participants.
Addressing the need to reduce the administrative burden on Anganwadi workers in India, Dr. M. Srinivas, Member, NITI Aayog, delivered a keynote discussion highlighting the importance of enabling frontline workers to focus on supporting mothers and children rather than being occupied by paperwork.
“Frontline workers like Anganwadi staff should not be burdened solely with administrative tasks and manual record-keeping. Technology and policy changes must simplify their workload so they can focus on their primary mission: directly nurturing mothers and children,” he said.
Arti Ahuja, Former Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India, spoke about targeted artificial intelligence interventions to support vulnerable families. She highlighted the potential of data-driven approaches to identify risks at the local level and enable timely assistance.
“The true power of AI lies in data-driven empathy. Down to the village and hamlet level, AI can help us identify red flags such as family migration or food scarcity, thus enabling targeted, local-level support for the most vulnerable children and families before they fall behind,” she said.
Explaining the vision behind Udaan as a platform for cross-sector collaboration, Rocket Learning’s co-founders Azeez Gupta, Namya Mahajan, Siddhant Sachdeva and Utsav Kheria issued a joint statement emphasising the need to move beyond basic early childhood support towards opportunities for children to thrive.
“Every child deserves more than simply surviving the early years - they deserve the opportunity to thrive. We have witnessed the possibilities of Anganwadi educators, pre-school teachers and parents working together as one coherent unit to change children’s trajectories. Udaan 2026 was about moving from surviving to thriving, and the conversations on evidence, investment and technology reinforced that India has both - the ideas and the will - to make this possible at scale. Rocket Learning remains committed to supporting India’s early learning ecosystem, with Udaan 2026 marking an important milestone in this journey,” the co-founders said.
Throughout the conference, discussions examined ways to reform and strengthen Anganwadis, improve investment in early childhood development, draw lessons from academic research and assess how technology could support the developmental needs of young children.
The event also featured the presentation of results and lessons from an evaluation of a highly successful, technology-based homegrown early childhood development model. Dr. Abhijeet Singh presented the findings, while the conference provided a platform for Anganwadi educators and parents to share their experiences and stories.
Udaan 2026 reinforced the established case for Early Childhood Care and Education, with discussions focused on translating that understanding into action at scale through rigorous implementation, compassion and a commitment to every child.
Rocket Learning is one of India’s largest early learning non-profits, working to improve early childhood and foundational learning outcomes at scale. With 85% of brain development taking place before the age of six, the organisation focuses on making early learning a priority through technology, behavioural insights and strong government partnerships. Its work empowers parents, teachers and frontline educators to achieve measurable improvements in children’s learning.
Since 2020, Rocket Learning has worked directly with government systems across 15 states and union territories and more than 200 districts. Its programmes have impacted 6 million children between birth and six years of age across more than 500,000 classrooms, including 400,000 Anganwadi educators.
Through the responsible use of AI and digital innovation, Rocket Learning aims to make quality early education accessible, inclusive and effective for every child. The organisation has set its sights on positively impacting 50 million underserved children by 2030.
Further information is available at rocketlearning.org.
About The Author
Comment List