Context:

Recently, the Union Cabinet, has approved the One Nation One Subscription scheme for providing country-wide access to scholarly research articles and journal publications.  

About One Nation One Subscription 

It is a Central Sector Scheme administered through a portal under the Department of Higher Education to work as a facility for higher education institutions and R&D laboratories of the central government.

The platform seeks to provide equitable access to 13,000 scholarly journals under a single platform. It is set to become operational on January 1, 2025. 

A total of about Rs.6,000 crore has been allocated for the scheme for three calendar years (2025-2027).

The benefits of the scheme will be provided to more than 6,300 institutions and Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) under the management of the Central or State Government through a national subscription coordinated by a central agency, the Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET) Centre, Gandhinagar.

• Currently, HEIs can access journals through 10 different library consortia (a group of two or more libraries) which are under the administrative control of various ministries.

It will supplement the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) initiative to foster a culture of research and innovation throughout government universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories.

The scheme is in line with the goals of  National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

Need for ONOS

• Expanded Access: ONOS will provide access to top scholarly journals to 1.8 crore students, faculty, and researchers, including those in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.
• Cost Reduction: It eliminates duplicate subscriptions across institutions, reducing overlapping costs and ensuring efficient use of funds.
• Stronger Bargaining Power: A single subscription enhances negotiation leverage, reducing costs from ₹4,000 crore to ₹1,800 crore for 13,000 journals.
• Better Utilisation & Planning: Usage data will help track journal access, improve planning, and promote better resource use among inactive institutions.

About Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET) Centre, Gandhinagar

• It is an autonomous Inter-University Centre (IUC) of the University Grants Commission, under the Ministry of Education.
• It is a major National Programme initiated by the UGC in 1991. It became an independent Inter-University Centre on 16th May 1996. 
• INFLIBNET is involved in modernizing university libraries in India using state-of-the-art technologies for the optimum utilisation of information.