New Delhi: The Government of India’s ambitious One Nation One Subscription (ONOS) initiative is set to enter its second phase, with the Centre considering expanding the scheme to include private universities and private deemed-to-be universities.
Launched on January 1, 2025, ONOS was introduced as a major step towards democratising access to global scholarly knowledge and strengthening India’s research and academic ecosystem. The initiative provides students, faculty members and researchers in eligible institutions with nationwide access to high-impact international research papers and academic journal publications.
The proposed second phase could significantly widen the reach of the initiative by bringing private higher education institutions into its network. The expansion is expected to enable a larger pool of students, academics and researchers to access international scholarly resources that are often expensive and difficult for individual institutions to subscribe to.
One Nation One Subscription (ONOS) | Second Phase
The One Nation One Subscription (ONOS), a landmark initiative providing access to scholarly e-journals for academic and R&D institutions, is proposed to enter its second phase of implementation. This phase may further expand ONOS… pic.twitter.com/HinswJckfC
— Office of Principal Scientific Adviser to the GoI (@PrinSciAdvOff) September 8, 2026
As part of preparations for the next phase, a consultative meeting with relevant stakeholders is being planned. Institutions interested in participating in the proposed expansion have been invited to register for the consultation process.
Under the existing ONOS framework, participating government higher education and research institutions can access more than 13,000 scholarly journals from over 30 international publishers through a single national subscription mechanism. The initiative also provides researchers with opportunities to publish their work in open-access journals, potentially increasing the global visibility of Indian research.
The scheme is aligned with the government’s broader vision of Viksit Bharat@2047, with research, innovation and access to knowledge identified as key pillars for building a globally competitive knowledge economy.
The possible inclusion of private universities in the second phase could mark an important expansion of ONOS, particularly as India’s higher education sector has a large and growing private institutional base. Greater access to international research could help institutions strengthen academic programmes, support research projects and encourage collaboration across disciplines.
The government has set September 18, 2026, as the last date for interested institutions to register for the proposed consultation.
Register here: https://onos.gov.in/privateInstMeeting
If implemented, the second phase of ONOS could transform the initiative from a major government-institution knowledge-sharing programme into a broader national research-access platform, bringing high-quality scholarly resources within reach of a much wider academic community.
