In its landmark first year, the One Nation One Subscription initiative delivered over 113 million journal article downloads—transforming how students and scientists across India engage with world-class knowledge.
NEW DELHI — When a research scholar at a state university in a Tier-2 city needs access to the latest paper published in Nature or IEEE Transactions, the answer used to be a paywall, an institutional subscription gap, or a waiting period. As of January 2025, that answer has changed. Under India’s One Nation One Subscription (ONOS) scheme, over 13,000 international journals are now a click away—free of charge—for nearly 10 million students, researchers, and faculty across government institutions nationwide.
The numbers tell the story plainly: in its very first year of operation, between January and December 2025, the scheme facilitated more than 113 million research article downloads. That figure—released by the Ministry of Education—underscores what policymakers describe as the most ambitious democratisation of academic knowledge in Indian history.
“Prior to ONOS, barely 5.5 million users across 2,300 institutions could access 8,000 journals. Today, that has grown to 10 million users, 5,800 institutions, and over 13,000 journals.”
The scheme was approved by the Union Cabinet in November 2024 and became operational on January 1, 2025. It is administered by the INFLIBNET Centre—an initiative of the University Grants Commission (UGC)—and is backed by a government allocation of ₹6,000 crore for the three-year period spanning 2025 to 2027. Crucially, the government makes direct payments to publishers, removing the subscription burden entirely from individual institutions.
From Fragmented Consortia to a Single National Subscription
Before ONOS, India’s research access landscape was a patchwork of ten separate journal consortia operating under various ministries. These collectively offered access to approximately 8,000 journals and served around 5.5 million users at some 2,300 institutions. The inequity was stark: premier institutions like the IITs and IISc enjoyed robust access, while smaller state universities and regional research bodies often had to make do with limited or no access to cutting-edge international literature.
ONOS has dismantled this disparity. The platform now features 30 of the world’s leading academic publishers—including Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley, Taylor & Francis, IEEE, Oxford University Press, and Cambridge University Press—accessible through the centralised portal at onos.gov.in. Institutions can connect either through IP-based access or individual institutional logins.
Approximately 10 million research articles are downloaded from the platform every month, according to government data—a throughput that places ONOS among the world’s largest single-country academic access programmes.
Top Performers: Who Is Downloading the Most?
| Institution | Downloads |
|---|---|
| IIT Madras | 4.03 million |
| IISc Bengaluru | 2.83 million |
| Banaras Hindu University | 1.53 million |
| University of Delhi | 1.42 million |
| Anna University | 780,000 |
| Jawaharlal Nehru University | 730,000 |
| Tata Institute of Fundamental Research | Significant* |
| Aligarh Muslim University | Significant* |
* Exact figures not publicly disclosed. Both institutions recorded notably high download volumes.
IIT Madras led all institutions with 4.03 million downloads over the year, followed closely by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, with 2.83 million. Among Central Universities, Banaras Hindu University and the University of Delhi emerged as the highest users, recording 1.53 million and 1.42 million downloads respectively. Among State Universities, Anna University topped the chart with 780,000 downloads. Jawaharlal Nehru University, the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, and Aligarh Muslim University also registered significant usage volumes.
ONOS at a Glance: Key Statistics
| Stat | Detail |
|---|---|
| 113 Million+ | Research articles downloaded in 2025 |
| 13,000+ | International journals now accessible |
| ~10 Million | Students, researchers & faculty benefiting |
| 5,800+ | Participating institutions (up from 2,300) |
| ₹6,000 Crore | Government allocation for 2025–2027 |
| 30 | Major publishers on the platform |
| 430+ | Gold Open Access journals for publishing |
Beyond Access: Supporting Open Research Publishing
ONOS extends its benefits beyond mere readership. The scheme also assists researchers with Article Processing Charges (APCs)—the fees typically required to publish in open-access journals. Through ONOS, researchers gain publishing access to over 430 ‘Gold Open Access’ journals: publications that make research immediately and freely available online at no cost to readers worldwide.
This feature directly addresses a longstanding barrier for Indian researchers, who often found open-access publishing financially prohibitive. By enabling Indian scientists to publish in globally visible, freely accessible journals, ONOS strengthens the international footprint of Indian research output.
“Researchers in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities now have the same access to global research literature as those at premier institutes. That is the real transformation.”
A Step Toward Research Equity
Government officials have highlighted the scheme’s potential to level the playing field in Indian academia. Researchers based outside major metropolitan centres—long disadvantaged by unequal access to academic infrastructure—can now read and cite the same journals as their peers at IITs and IIMs. This, officials argue, will over time improve the quality and diversity of research emerging from India’s vast network of universities and colleges.
INFLIBNET, the nodal agency managing the platform, has reported that the scheme is already driving a measurable uptick in research activity at institutions that previously had limited or no journal access. Educators and policy analysts have broadly welcomed the initiative, calling it a structural reform that could reshape India’s position in global scientific rankings over the coming decade.
With the three-year funding cycle running through 2027, and the government committed to direct publisher payments that insulate institutions from subscription volatility, ONOS appears poised to become a permanent feature of India’s academic infrastructure—not merely a one-year milestone.
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