On Monday, November 25, the Union Cabinet gave its approval to the "One Nation One Subscription" (ONOS) scheme, which will grant all Central and state-run higher education institutions access to prestigious international journals through a single platform.
According to the Press Information Bureau, "The initiative will open a goldmine of knowledge available in top-quality scholarly journals to nearly 1.8 crore students, faculty, researchers and scientists of all disciplines, including those in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, thereby encouraging core as well as interdisciplinary research in the country."
In line with the government's National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, Rs 6,000 crore has been allocated for the initiative over the next three years (2025 to 2027) aligning with the Viksit Bharat @ 2047 vision and the Anusandhan National Research Foundation.
What are its provisions?
- A total of 30 major international journal publishers have been included in the 'One Nation One Subscription initiative'.
- Nearly 13,000 e-journals published by these publishers will be accessible to over 6,300 government higher education institutions and central government Research & Development (R&D) institutions.
- Access to the journals will be facilitated through a national subscription, coordinated by the Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET), an autonomous inter-university centre of the University Grants Commission (UGC), using a fully digital process.
To ensure its smooth functioning, and keep a check,
- The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) will regularly assess the usage of One Nation One Subscription and the publications authored by Indian researchers from these institutions.
- Furthermore, the Directorate of Higher Education (DHE) and other ministries overseeing Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) and R&D institutions will actively carry out Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) campaigns to inform students, faculty, and researchers about the availability and access methods of 'One Nation One Subscription', aiming to increase the utilisation of the facility nationwide.
- State governments will be urged to conduct campaigns to maximise the usage of this facility by students, faculty, and researchers in all government institutions.