The Union Cabinet approved ₹6,000 crore for the ONOS initiative to provide 13,000 scholarly journals to government Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) under a unified platform starting January 1, 2025.
Current Scenario
- Access Methods: HEIs access journals via:
- 10 Library Consortia: Managed by various ministries.
- Individual Subscriptions: Covering 8,100 journals for ~2,500 HEIs.
- Example: INFLIBNET, under UGC, oversees journal access for HEIs.
Key Features of ONOS
- Unified Platform: Access to 13,000 journals from 30 global publishers like Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, and IEEE.
- Cost Efficiency: Centralized negotiations reduced costs from ₹4,000 crore/year to ₹1,800 crore/year.
- Implementation: INFIBNET will manage the platform.
- Flexibility: HEIs can still subscribe to additional journals individually.
ONOS
- Expand access to journals for 55 lakh students, researchers, and faculty across 6,300 institutions.
- Avoid duplication and reduce costs.
- Enhance bargaining power with publishers.
- Gain insights into journal usage and downloads.
Future Steps
- APC Negotiations: Article Processing Charges (APCs) for journal publications will also be standardized.
- Private HEIs: Their inclusion in ONOS is under consideration.
