National Library and Information Services Infrastructure for Scholarly Content (N-LIST), an initiative of the Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Mission on Education through ICT which was launched in May 2010 with multi-fold objectives is receiving a good response as seen from the number of subscribers it has got in a year.
The project facilitates access to e-resources to students, researchers and faculty from colleges through proxy servers. It provides scholarly information in the e-format at discounted rates.
Executed by the University Grants Commission – InfoNet Digital Library Consortium (UGC-InfoNet), Information and Library Network Centre (INFLIBNET), Ahmedabad, and Indian National Digital Library in Engineering Sciences and Technology (INDEST)-AICTE Consortium, there are as many as 1960 universities, technical institutions, and colleges registered as subscribers to the project.
Log-in IDs and passwords have been issued to more than 1.2 lakh faculty members, students and researchers after obtaining the list of authorised users from registered colleges.
These users can have access to nearly 2,100 e-journals published in the United States, the United Kingdom, and India, and 51,000 e-books, also from the same countries.
In addition to the e-journals and e-books, the two consortiums, namely the UGC-InfoNet and INDEST are jointly responsible for providing access to the UGC-InfoNet e-resources to technical institutions and monitor its usage, and INDEST e-resources to select universities and monitor its usage.
The INFLIBNET is responsible for the subscribing and providing access to select e-resources to 6,000 Government / Government-aided colleges, and to act as a monitoring agency for colleges to evaluate, promote, impart training and take up all activities involved in the process of providing effective and efficient access to e-resources.
As on August 5, 2011, of the total number registered, there were 1,398 Government / Government-aided colleges covered under 12 (B) of the UGC Act as members.
Universities and colleges are being oriented on subscribing and using the N-LIST project. Speaking at an orientation programme organised by the UGC-Academic Staff College at Bharathiar University, P. Kannan, Scientist at the INFLIBNET Centre, Ahmedabad, said that in Tamil Nadu, so far 114 institutions had registered, and 95 had access to the project.
“The first and foremost eligibility to subscribe to the project is that the college should conform to the 12 (B) / 2 (F) of the UGC Act. Faculty, students and researchers desirous of accessing e-resources through the N-LIST project should belong to such colleges. An annual membership fee is applicable” he said. Those colleges that were not covered under 12 (B) / 2(F) could register themselves as associate members of the project.
Registration could be done either online or offline http://nlist.inflibnet.ac.in . Colleges should register by filling in the online questionnaire and enclose the 12 (B) / 2(F) certificate issued by the UGC.
They should provide list of faculty and students. Then passwords for access to e-resources should be obtained and the membership fee paid.
The institutions those were eligible to subscribe, had to be equipped with internet-enabled computers for faculty and students.
Mr. Kannan also explained how users should access e-resources available under the N-LIST project. He urged the colleges to develop adequate ICT infrastructure to enable users to access e-resources effectively.
He also called for generating awareness about availability of e-resources by conducting orientation programmes for students and distributing relevant information in the form of brochures and pamphlets.
