Neelima Rajendran, Bengaluru resident and a working mother with a three-year-old daughter, felt a chill down her spine when she saw the videos of the alleged child abuse at the daycare centre on the Capgemini premises in Brookefield.
Neelima‘s daughter started attending a daycare near her house when she was only a little past one. The parents, both working, found it near-impossible to find a reliable stay-at-home nanny for the toddler.
“I wasn’t fully satisfied with the daycare we finally settled for, as it didn’t have a CCTV camera, but it was better than all the other centres we visited near our house. It was shocking to see the videos of children being abused at the centre. Now I keep wondering what a big risk we are taking by sending children to these facilities,” Neelima exclaims.
Crèches and daycare centres are often the only viable childcare option for urban nuclear households where both parents work. The incident at the daycare at Capgemini, where children being allegedly abused by the staff was caught on camera, has left many parents like Neelima questioning whether their children are truly safe in such facilities. Further, it has exposed the gaps in the childcare system in the State, highlighting how the line of accountability blurs when things go wrong at workplace childcare.
The 24-page guidelines, issued by the Department of Women and Child Development, include all the stakeholders and factors required to run crèches, and list the duties of parents as well as staff, but fail to appoint one department or body as the nodal department to monitor these crèches. | Photo Credit: file photo
In 2015, the Karnataka government issued guidelines for establishing crèche/daycare centres in corporate offices, industries, government and NGO establishments, MNCs, local bodies, societies, boards, trusts, and home-based facilities or those run by individuals.
The 24-page guidelines, issued by the Department of Women and Child Development, include all the stakeholders and factors required to run crèches, and list the duties of parents as well as staff, but fail to appoint one department or body as the nodal department to monitor these crèches.
Thippeswamy K.T., former member of Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR), notes, “In 2015, there were allegations against creches and daycare centres that they were feeding a liquid or a tonic that forced children to sleep. This was reported across the media and was discussed in the State Assembly. That was when the guidelines were framed and issued. However, it remained on paper as there was no nodal agency or department appointed to monitor them.”
The guidelines mention that “periodic and surprise inspections of the crèche shall be conducted by prescribed authorities”, but the guidelines fail to specify which authority or department.
Crèches and daycare centres are often the only viable childcare option for urban nuclear households where both parents work. | Photo Credit: file photo
An official with the Directorate of Child Protection, Bengaluru East division, spoke about how inspections at several private crèches following the incident revealed an inadequate number of caretakers. “We have been inspecting several private creches, and most of them have 30 children with only two caretakers. There should be at least six to eight caretakers for that number so that each child is given sufficient attention. In addition, there should be a limit on the number of children admitted in these creches,” the official said.
The incident has jolted the officials to re-examine these gaps.
Speaking to The Hindu, Shamla Iqbal, Secretary, Department of Women and Child Development, said that the department will soon revise these guidelines and also appoint a nodal department or officers to monitor the functioning of crèches.
According to the KSCPCR, a committee will soon be set up to revise the guidelines.
Admitting that the departments concerned have failed to monitor crèches or daycare centres, Santhosh Kumar, chairperson, KSCPCR, said, “Now, a committee will be formed comprising officials from the Department of Education, Women and Child Development, Labour, State police, psychiatrists and psychologists from NIMHANS, Directorate of Child Protection and others. Recommendations from all the officials will be considered in revising the 2015 guidelines and deciding the nodal department that will be in charge of monitoring and inspection of crèches.”
According to him, the guidelines will address the maximum number of children that can be enrolled in crèches and daycare centres, the number of caretakers, mandatory registration of the centres through a government portal and CCTV cameras at the facilities.
Beyond questions of regulation and institutional lapses, experts say such incidents can have lasting consequences for young children, impacting their overall development and mental health.
While the impact may vary from child to child, John Vijay Sagar Kommu, head of the department, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, NIMHANS, warns that children who experience trauma may suffer slower development of speech, language and cognitive skills.
“As they grow older, they may become aggressive towards family members and friends, exhibit hyperactivity, or experience changes in their biological rhythms, including sleep and eating patterns. Nightmares are common among such children who may cling to parents and cry continuously,” he notes.
Anxiety disorder and depression are commonly noticed when such children grow up to be adults. “If such changes are noticed in children, parents must seek immediate help,” John cautions.
In Karnataka, workplace crèches are primarily governed by the Karnataka Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Rules, 2019. While it places the obligation on employers with more than 50 employees to provide crèches at the workplace, little does it say about where liability lies when things go wrong.
At a press meet following the incident, KSCPCR officials said that Capgemini does not bear liability in the incident as the facility was operated by the external provider Little Scholars. Responding to queries by The Hindu, the IT major said that the company has decided to temporarily suspend services at all crèche facilities operated by Little Scholars on Capgemini’s campuses across India as a precaution, while the authorities conduct their investigation.
“To support affected families during this period, we have made flexible work arrangements, including work-from-home options. Employees may also access dedicated counselling services through our Employee Assistance Program, and a helpline has been established to address questions and provide additional support,” it said.
The company has also reportedly filed a police complaint against Little Scholars.
Experts, however, feel that the question of accountability extends beyond the immediate perpetrator or the daycare operator.
“Vicarious liability cannot be ruled out, particularly when the safety of a child is involved. To curb this menace, even the provider of the space shall be made liable,” says Anjali Ramanna, lawyer, juvenile and women rights advocate, and former chairperson of Child Welfare Committee.
Citing the Code on Social Security, 2020 and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020, B.C. Prabhakar, labour law expert and managing committee member, Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC), remarks that companies cannot wash their hands off by simply outsourcing crèche operations.
“Due diligence must include verification of physical facilities, safety, background verification records of staff and a periodic check on these. Simply negotiating contracts and terms to indemnify themselves will not be enough, and organisations need to prioritise accountability.
While agreeing that the staff at the daycare centres and the operators of the facility must be held responsible for the safety and well-being of children, Purvesh Sharma, co-founder and COO at Footprints Childcare, a pre-school and daycare chain, believes the corporates who provide the space for the facilities as well as parents play a role in ensuring accountability.
“Children are not always easy to handle. Hence an adequate number of trained adults are important. But operators may compromise on the number or qualifications of the staff. Sometimes this happens due to cost pressures when corporates negotiate aggressively on pricing. Parents who are sending their children to these facilities must demand greater accountability from the employers, understand the kind of operators they are getting to run the facility, and the terms under which it is being run,” he says.
What the incident also brought to the fore is the deeply entrenched misogyny in sections of society, which were quick to blame working mothers, accusing them of prioritising their careers over their children and risking the safety of children for financial gain.
Deepa Boopesh Reddy, FICCI FLO chairperson, Bengaluru, questions this misplaced criticism.
“Going by that logic, instead of sending children to school, mothers should simply teach them at home, as such incidents could happen at schools also,” she quips sarcastically. “It is as much a man’s responsibility to care for a child as it is a woman’s. When both a man and woman step out to work, it is to give themselves, their children and their families a better life.”
Reddy feels it is important for everyone involved to go the extra mile on safety by knowing who is being hired, putting robust HR policies in place and ensuring regular audits are conducted.
Anjali Ramanna adds that creating awareness, training the public mentality to be more empathetic and issue-focused, and encouraging public involvement in monitory bodies is important to change the discourse away from blaming the parents.
Prabhakar points out that the transition from maternity leave to full-time work is historically the single largest career drop-off point for female professionals in corporate India.
“A well-maintained, reliable on-site or nearby daycare facility bridges this gap seamlessly. It provides an essential safety net for mothers returning to work, especially in modern urban environments where nuclear families are common and external family support systems are unavailable. By offering a secure space for their children, organisations actively prevent the loss of experienced female leaders, lower recruitment replacement costs, and build a culture of genuine inclusion and support,” he says.
According to him, to make these facilities successful, corporate daycares must move beyond just providing basic childcare and focus heavily on maintaining high operating standards.
In Bengaluru, as mandated by the law, several companies provide on-site or nearby daycare centres through tie-ups with third parties. However, the quality of crèches, be it corporate daycare centres or independent facilities, is not always top notch.
Medha (name changed), an IT professional at an MNC in the city, notes that many of her acquaintances with children have gone for alternative arrangements like seeking the help of family members over choosing company-provided crèches, due to quality concerns.
Neelima recollects how most of the crèches she visited near her home while looking for childcare were cramped, poorly ventilated, raised safety concerns or lacked adequately trained staff. Such experiences underscore the need for stronger regulation and stricter enforcement of internationally recognised best practices.
Among the suggestions provided by Thippeswamy to the government are training the staff working in crèches on child psychology, child rights, first aid, emergency response, behavioural management, and a separate helpline number for people to raise grievances regarding crèches, surprise inspections, and a district care monitoring committee in each district.
Prabhakar, who stresses stricter licensing of crèches, lists childproofing across touchpoints, a healthy staff-to-child ratio, child-friendly sanitation spaces and thorough vetting, certification and ongoing training for employees as some of the essential requirements for daycare centres.
Echoing these principles, Sharma points to measures such as cushioned walls, floors and finger protectors on doors, strict staff screening and hygiene protocols, a dress code for staff, CCTV surveillance with live access for parents and freshly prepared food that is tasted by adults before being served to children.
“Such simple practices and processes, which are implemented all over the world, make a big difference to safeguard our children. We are talking about very young children here, aged from six months to five years. They are vulnerable and cannot speak up for themselves. Their safety and security are of topmost concern,” he says.
Published - July 10, 2026 07:00 am IST