Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the ‘One Nation One Subscription’ scheme will strengthen efforts to make India a hub for research, learning and knowledge and will also encourage interdisciplinary studies.
The Union Cabinet, chaired by PM Modi, approved the scheme on Monday. It is a Central Sector Scheme aimed at providing country-wide access to scholarly research articles and journal publications.
In a post on X, PM Modi said, “Cabinet has approved ‘One Nation One Subscription’, which will strengthen our efforts to become a hub for research, learning and knowledge. It will also encourage interdisciplinary studies.”
The scheme will be a ‘One Nation One Subscription’ facility for the government higher education institutions and R&D laboratories of the Central government.
Key highlights of the scheme:
The scheme will be administered through a simple, user-friendly and fully digital process.
A total of about Rs 6,000 crore has been allocated for the scheme for three years, 2025, 2026 and 2027 as a new Central Sector Scheme.
The scheme will build on and further enhance the scope and reach of the range of initiatives undertaken by the Government of India over the past decade in the domains of education, for maximising access to quality higher education for the youth of India. This will supplement the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) initiative to promote research and development and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout government universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories.
The benefits of the scheme will be provided to all Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) under the management of the Central or state government and Research & Development Institutions of the Central government, through a national subscription coordinated by a central agency, namely the Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET), an autonomous inter-university centre of the University Grants Commission (UGC). This list covers more than 6,300 institutions, translating into nearly 1.8 crore students, faculty and researchers, who will be able to potentially avail benefits of the scheme.
An official press release said the scheme is in line with the goals of Viksit Bharat 2047, National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and Anusandhan National Research Foundation. The initiative will expand access to scholarly journals to a vast diaspora of students, faculty, researchers and scientists of all disciplines, including those in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, thereby promoting core as well as interdisciplinary research in the country. The ANRF will periodically review the usage of One Nation One Subscription and publications of Indian authors of these institutions.
The Department of Higher Education (DHE) will have a unified portal ‘One Nation One Subscription’ through which the institutions will be able to access the journals.
The ANRF will periodically review the usage of One Nation One Subscription and publications of Indian authors of these institutions.
The DHE and other Ministries having HEIs and R&D Institutions under their management shall be proactively conducting Information, Education and Communication (IEC) campaigns among students, faculty and researchers of these institutions about the availability and method of access to One Nation One Subscription, resulting in improved usage of the facility across the country.
The state governments will also be requested to carry out campaigns at their level to maximise usage of the unique facility by students, faculty and researchers of all government institutions.
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