One Nation One Subscription to bring STEM journal access to state universities; Elsevier, Cambridge among partners

One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)—The central government’s new scheme will give at least 18 million students across both central and state-funded universities access to international journals.

Around 30 publishers, including Elsevier and Cambridge University Press, have agreed to collaborate with the government on this scheme. Phase one of the scheme would go live on January 1, 2025, which the Union Cabinet approved last month, reported PTI.

List of publishers

It is the first time the government has agreed with 30 of the biggest publishers in STEM, management, social sciences and humanities.

As per a release by the Press Information Bureau, the list of publishers includes Elsevier, Taylor and Francis, BMJ Journals, Cambridge University Press, Sage, Oxford University Press, and Project Muse, among others.

Only IITs had the access

Earlier, only IITs or specific central universities had access to these journals. Under ONOS, 451 state public universities, 4,864 colleges and 172 institutes of national importance will be among the 6,380 higher education and research institutes to have access to high-end journals.

“Earlier, institutions such as IITs or Central universities subscribed to a small set of journals related to specific disciplines, but under ONOS, all institutions will have access to 13,400 research journals,” Department of Science and Technology Secretary Abhay Karadikar said, PTI reported.

When will private universities get access

As of now, the first phase of the ONOS scheme is available only to central and state-funded universities. Principal Scientific Advisor (PSA) Ajay Sood said private institutes are likely to be covered in the second phase.

“The phase-one, to be executed over the next three years, will grant access to all the central and state-funded universities and colleges across India. After that, we plan to extend it to private institutions and eventually target universal access through all designated access points in all public in phase three,” Professor Ajay Sood told PTI.