430
In e na ional Jou nal o Ad ance and Applied Resea ch
www.ijaa .co.in
ISSN – 2347-7075
Impac Fac o – 8.141
Pee Re iewed
Bi-Mon hly
Vol. 6 No. 39
Sep embe - Oc obe - 2025
INFLIBNET Cen e: A UGC Ini ia i e o S eng hening Academic Lib a ies
in India
M . Yogesh B. Thaka e1 & D . B. S. Pad al2
1Lib a ian, D. Y. Pa il Ag icul u e & Technical Uni e si y, Talsande.
2Lib a ian, M. H. Shinde Maha idyalaya, Tisangi.
Co esponding Au ho – M . Yogesh B. Thaka e
DOI - 10.5281/zenodo.17278506
Abs ac :
The In o ma ion and Lib a y Ne wo k (INFLIBNET) Cen e an In e -Uni e si y Cen e (IUC)
o he Uni e si y G an s Commission (UGC) has been a co ne s one o India’s na ionwide e o o
mode nize academic lib a ies since 1991. This pape e iews INFLIBNET’s majo se ices (e-
ShodhSindhu, N-LIST, Shodhganga, ShodhShuddhi, SOUL, IndCa , INFED/iden i y ede a ion,
IRINS/VIDWAN and e-con en p ojec s), syn hesizes indings om published esea ch abou hei
usage and impac , and iden i ies ongoing challenges and esea chable oppo uni ies. D awing on
go e nmen /INFLIBNET documen a ion and academic s udies, he e iew inds ha INFLIBNET’s
combina ion o conso ial licensing, na ional eposi o ies, lib a y au oma ion, iden i y ede a ion, and
plagia ism-de ec ion p o ision has measu ably expanded access, imp o ed ope a ional e iciency,
and enhanced esea ch isibili y while also e ealing pe sis en gaps in awa eness, aining, and ool-
quali y e alua ion. I d aws on o icial documen a ion and ecen de elopmen s o a gue ha
INFLIBNET unc ions as na ional schola ly in as uc u e coo dina ing esou ces, s anda ds, and
se ices ha educe cos s, inc ease equi y o access, and aise esea ch quali y o uni e si ies and
colleges h oughou India.
Keywo ds: INFLIBNET, UGC, Academic Lib a ies, India.
In oduc ion
The In o ma ion and Lib a y Ne wo k
(INFLIBNET) Cen e was launched as a UGC
ini ia i e on 27 Feb ua y 1991 and became an
independen In e -Uni e si y Cen e in 1996.
I s s a ed mission is o mode nize uni e si y
lib a ies, p omo e esou ce sha ing, and
p o ide na ional scale se ices ha educe cos
and imp o e equi y o schola ly access ac oss
India.
Indian academic lib a ies ope a e in a
apidly expanding highe -educa ion
ecosys em, whe e equi able access o digi al
esou ces, in e ope able sys ems, and in eg i y
in esea ch a e pa amoun . The INFLIBNET
Cen e in Gandhinaga p o ides he backbone
in as uc u e ha enables hese p io i ies a
na ional scale.
This pape is a ocused li e a u e
e iew ha (a) summa izes INFLIBNET’s
lagship se ices, (b) in eg a es empi ical
indings om ecen s udies abou hei
adop ion and impac , and (c) highligh s gaps
and u u e di ec ions o p ac ice and esea ch.
Me hods:
This is a na a i e/sys ema ic e iew
syn hesizing: INFLIBNET documen a ion and
p ojec pages, na ional epo s, and pee -
e iewed o schola ly pape s in es iga ing
INFLIBNET se ices (Shodhganga, e-
ShodhSindhu, N-LIST, SOUL, ShodhShuddhi,
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Yogesh B. Thaka e & D . B. S. Pad al
431
IndCa , IRINS/VIDWAN). Li e a u e was
iden i ied h ough a ge ed web sea ches o
ins i u ional pages, eposi o y eco ds
(Shodhganga, Digi al Commons),
SSRN/Resea ch Ga e en ies and jou nal
a icles e e encing he named se ices.
Rep esen a i e empi ical s udies and impac
analyses we e selec ed o illus a e adop ion
pa e ns, usage me ics, and e alua i e
indings. (Sea ch samples used: e-
ShodhSindhu e alua ion s udies, N-LIST
usage s udies, SOUL au oma ion case s udies,
Shodhganga impac analyses, ShodhShuddhi
egion-wise analyses).
Expanding And Equalizing Access To
Schola ly Con en :
e-ShodhSindhu (e-SS) and N-LIST: e-
ShodhSindhu is a na ional conso ium
ha p o ides uni e si ies wi h high-
quali y schola ly e- esou ces a nego ia ed
a es, aiming o maximize co e age while
minimizing cos h ough collec i e
licensing and usage moni o ing.
N-LIST (Na ional Lib a y and
In o ma ion Se ices In as uc u e o
Schola ly Con en ) ex ends compa able
access o colleges— ou ing au hen ica ed
use s h ough INFLIBNET’s se e s o
publishe pla o ms. The p og amme
ad e ises access o housands o jou nals
and la ge e-book packages, b idging he
esou ce gap be ween uni e si ies and
colleges. These laye ed conso ial models
educe duplica i e spending and expand
access equi y—especially c i ical o non-
au onomous colleges and u al
ins i u ions.
e-con en ecosys ems: e-PG Pa hshala,
e-Acha ya/Vidya-mi a, and e-
Adhyayan: INFLIBNET manages
na ional eposi o ies and po als o
cu iculum-linked e-con en de eloped
unde he Na ional Mission on Educa ion
h ough ICT (NME-ICT) e-PG
Pa hshala (open PG cou sewa e), e-
Acha ya/Vidya-mi a (in eg a ed access
o e-con en p ojec s), and e-Adhyayan
(UG/PG e-books de i ed om e-PG
Pa hshala). Toge he , hese pla o ms
suppo eaching-lea ning wi h openly
licensed, pee -de eloped ma e ials ac oss
disciplines.
Disco e y, In e ope abili y And
Sha ed Se ices:
IndCa : Na ional Union Ca alogue:
IndCa is he ee union ca alogue o
books, heses, and se ials held in majo
Indian academic lib a ies, p o iding
MARC/MARCXML eco ds, loca ions,
and holdings da a. I enables in e -lib a y
loan, educes ca aloguing duplica ion, and
suppo s na ional-le el esou ce sha ing.
indca .in libne .ac.in+1IJCRT
SOUL: Lib a y Au oma ion a Scale:
SOUL (So wa e o Uni e si y
Lib a ies)—de eloped by
INFLIBNET—is a widely adop ed
in eg a ed lib a y managemen sys em
ailo ed o Indian academic wo k lows,
wi h OPAC and modules o acquisi ions,
se ials, ca aloguing, and ci cula ion. I s
a ailabili y (including a demo edi ion and
upg ade pa h o 3.0) has enabled
housands o lib a ies o s anda dize
ope a ions cos -e ec i ely.
soul.in libne .ac.in+1klessccmumbai.edu.i
n
INFED: Fede a ed Iden i y & Access
Managemen :
INFED, India’s i s na ional access-
managemen ede a ion, adop s
Shibbole h/SAML o au hen ica e use s
ia hei ins i u ional iden i y p o ide s
and deli e seamless access o licensed e-
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Yogesh B. Thaka e & D . B. S. Pad al
432
esou ces—on-campus and emo ely. By
cen alizing us and enabling single-
sign-on, INFED imp o es secu i y, use
expe ience, and license compliance.
in ed.in libne .ac.in+1 e eds.o g
Resea ch Visibili y, Assessmen , And
In eg i y:
Shodhganga: Na ional ETD
Reposi o y:
Shodhganga p o ides open access o
Indian heses and disse a ions, inc easing
global isibili y o Indian esea ch and
educing duplica ion in opics and
me hods. As o May 7, 2025, he
eposi o y c ossed 600,000 heses,
unde sco ing i s ole as a p emie na ional
ETD pla o m.
shodhganga.in libne .ac.in+1
IRINS and VIDWAN: Resea ch
In o ma ion In as uc u e:
IRINS (Indian Resea ch In o ma ion
Ne wo k Sys em) is a na ional, web-based
RIM se ice ha ins i u ions can adop as
a ee SaaS o cu a e acul y p o iles and
publica ions; VIDWAN is he na ional
expe da abase unde pinning p o iles and
schola ly ne wo king. These ools suppo
e alua ion, collabo a ion, and analy ics
ac oss ins i u ions and disciplines.
i ins.o gINFLIBNET+1
ShodhShuddhi (Plagia ism De ec ion
Se ices):
Unde ShodhShuddhi, INFLIBNET has
p o ided na ional access o plagia ism
de ec ion so wa e o enhance esea ch
quali y and compliance. Since Oc obe 1,
2023, he p og amme has p o isioned
D illBi -Ex eme o pa icipa ing HEIs,
succeeding ea lie deploymen s (e.g.,
Ou iginal), and has p ocessed millions o
submissions. Recen ield epo s and
s udies e lec bo h he ini ia i e’s scale
and ongoing deba es ega ding ool
pe o mance and aining needs—
signaling he impo ance o con inuous
imp o emen and capaci y building.
shodhshuddhi.in libne .ac.in+1BioMed
Cen alSAGE Jou nalsThe Times o India
Li e a u e Re iew:
He, H. T. (2024). - S udies o e-
ShodhSindhu and N-LIST show high
pe cei ed alue among esea ch schola s and
college use s bu also e eal une en awa eness
and a ied usage pa e ns ac oss ins i u ions.
Resea ch on e-ShodhSindhu usage by schola s
a p emie ins i u ions epo s ha access o
subsc ibed jou nals suppo s esea ch
p oduc i i y and li e a u e e iew ac i i ies,
while N-LIST s udies a college le el indica e
ha many use s emain unawa e o he
pla o m o lack aining o exploi i ully.
(Taylo & F ancis Online, Indian Lib a y
Associa ion)
Su wade, Y. P. (2023). - Mul iple case
s udies and desc ip i e s udies documen
SOUL’s b oad adop ion ( housands o
lib a ies) and i s ole in lowe ing au oma ion
ba ie s o small/medium ins i u ions.
Empi ical epo s p aise SOUL’s i wi h
Indian ca aloguing needs, while also calling
o s onge aining and long- e m suppo o
ealize ull bene i s. (ij ls.in, Resea chGa e)
P adhan, P. (2023). - Impac analyses
o Shodhganga (ETD eposi o y) indica e he
eposi o y has g ea ly expanded hesis
isibili y; bibliome ic s udies ind
Shodhganga deposi s a e inc easingly ci ed
and e e enced in subsequen esea ch,
demons a ing measu able schola ly each o
Indian heses. Se e al s udies ha e used
ci a ion and e e ence-analysis o quan i y
Shodhganga’s in luence on downs eam
esea ch. (docs.ndl d.o g, Resea chGa e)
A unkuma , V. R. e all (2022). -
Resea ch on ShodhShuddhi shows wide
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Yogesh B. Thaka e & D . B. S. Pad al
433
up ake o plagia ism de ec ion ac oss egions,
bu s udies also su ace conce ns: ool
selec ion and co e age (especially o o eign
comme cial da abases), in e p e a ion aining
o simila i y epo s, and consis en
ins i u ional policies. Region-wise analyses
documen he e ogenei y in usage in ensi y and
call o capaci y building o accompany
au oma ed checks. (Resea chGa e,
Digi alCommons)
Ramesh, S. e al. (2013). - Schola ly
wo k p oposing impac -assessmen ools o
INFLIBNET se ices highligh s he need o
s anda dized me ics (usage, ESG: equi y-
scope-go e nance) and imp o ed ou come
measu emen —mo ing beyond coun s o
signups o eco ds o measu e
eaching/ esea ch ou comes and cos sa ings.
(Resea chGa e)
Syn hesis:
1. Access and equi y: Conso ial
p ocu emen (e-ShodhSindhu) plus college
access (N-LIST) ha e demons ably
expanded access o subsc ip ion con en ,
bu awa eness and aining gaps limi ull
up ake a some colleges. (Taylo &
F ancis Online, Indian Lib a y
Associa ion)
2. Ope a ional e iciency: SOUL and
IndCa educe ca aloguing duplica ion and
enable basic au oma ion ac oss esou ce-
cons ained lib a ies. E idence shows
many smalle colleges success ully
au oma ed wi h SOUL bu equi e ongoing
skill de elopmen . (ij ls.in, E-Books
INFLIBNET)
3. Resea ch isibili y & euse: Shodhganga
has subs an ially inc eased he
disco e abili y o Indian heses; ci a ion
and usage s udies con i m measu able
downs eam use. (docs.ndl d.o g,
Resea chGa e)
4. Resea ch in eg i y challenges:
P o isioning a na ional PDS unde
ShodhShuddhi is a majo policy s ep, bu
s udies cau ion abou ool-co e age limi s
and he need o human judgemen and
aining in in e p e ing esul s.
(Resea chGa e, Digi alCommons)
5. Measu emen & go e nance needs:
Resea che s u ge s anda dized impac
me ics and mo e igo ous p og am
e alua ion o guide in es men s and
ea u e de elopmen . (Resea chGa e)
Challenges and Oppo uni ies:
Challenges iden i ied ac oss he li e a u e:
une en digi al li e acy and awa eness (esp. a
college le el), bandwid h/connec i i y
cons ain s, inconsis en me ada a quali y,
limi ed ORCID/iden i ie in eg a ion, and he
need o ca e ul e alua ion o plagia ism and
AI-de ec ion ools.
Oppo uni ies o INFLIBNET and
esea che s:
Design and alida e s anda dized impac
me ics o na ional lib a y se ices.
E alua e compa a i e pe o mance o
simila i y-de ec ion ools agains
benchma k co po a (including o eign-
comme cial da abases).
Expand ORCID/ISBN/DOI in eg a ion
ac oss IRINS, Shodhganga, and IndCa o
imp o e disambigua ion and analy ics.
(Resea chGa e)
Conduc andomized o quasi-
expe imen al s udies assessing how N-
LIST aining in e en ions a ec usage
and lea ning ou comes in colleges. (Indian
Lib a y Associa ion)
Conclusion:
INFLIBNET’s in eg a ed se ices
o m a unc ioning na ional schola ly
in as uc u e ha has ma e ially imp o ed
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Yogesh B. Thaka e & D . B. S. Pad al
434
access, au oma ion, isibili y, and esea ch-
quali y wo k lows in Indian highe educa ion.
Empi ical s udies co obo a e many posi i e
e ec s (usage o conso ia; SOUL adop ion;
Shodhganga isibili y) while highligh ing
pe sis en implemen a ion and e alua ion gaps.
Add essing aining, me ada a, e alua ion
me ics, and e idence-based ool selec ion will
u he s eng hen INFLIBNET’s con ibu ions
o India’s esea ch and educa ional ecosys em.
Re e ences:
1. INFLIBNET Cen e. (n.d.). Abou
INFLIBNET Cen e. Re ie ed Sep embe
9, 2025, om
h ps://www.in libne .ac.in/abou /
2. Shodhganga@INFLIBNET. (n.d.).
Shodhganga: A ese oi o Indian heses.
Re ie ed Sep embe 9, 2025, om
h ps://shodhganga.in libne .ac.in/
3. ShodhShuddhi. (n.d.). ShodhShuddhi –
INFLIBNET Cen e. Re ie ed Sep embe
9, 2025, om
h ps://shodhshuddhi.in libne .ac.in/
4. He, H. T. (2024). Pu pose o using e-
ShodhSindhu by Indian Ins i u e o
Technology acul y. Taylo & F ancis
Online.
5. K ishnamu hy, C. (2012). Use o N-Lis
elec onic esou ces by college lib a ies in
India. SSRN. h ps://ss n.com/
6. Su wade, Y. P. (2023). Lib a y au oma ion
wi h SOUL 3.0: A case s udy.
In e na ional Jou nal o Resea ch in
Lib a y Science. h ps://ij ls.in/
7. P adhan, P. (2023). Impac analysis o
Shodhganga ETD eposi o y h ough
ci a ion lens. In P oceedings o he
NDlTD/ETD Con e ence. Re ie ed om
h ps://docs.ndl d.o g/
8. A unkuma , V. R. e all (2022) Region-
wise ShodhShuddhi P og amme o
enhance esea ch quali y. Resea chGa e
P ep in . h ps://www. esea chga e.ne /
9. Ramesh, S. e al. (2013). De eloping a
s anda dised ool o impac assessmen o
INFLIBNET. Resea chGa e.
h ps://www. esea chga e.ne /
10. Kaushal, S. (2020). Awa eness and use o
N-LIST E- esou ces o selec ed deg ee
colleges. Jou nal o Indian Lib a y
Associa ion.
11. Kuma , A. (n.d.). E alua ion o lib a y
se ice quali y using LibQUAL+: A
compa a i e s udy o No h-Wes e n
uni e si ies [Doc o al disse a ion,
Shodhganga]. Shodhganga.
h ps://shodhganga.in libne .ac.in/
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