ETD Publishing, Open Access and Embargo~ETD Publishing, Open Access and Embargo: Experiences in Indian Universities

ETD Publishing, Open Access and Embargo~ETD Publishing, Open Access and Embargo: Experiences in Indian Universities

Gaur, Ramesh

Currently India is having over 700 Universities. There are 45 Central Universities, 318 State Universities, 185 Private Universities, 128 Deemed-to-be Universities, 51 Institutions are of national importance. The number of colleges has also registered manifold increase of 74 times with just 500 in 1950 growing to 37,204, as on 31st March, 2013 . On an average, over 40,000 Ph.D. theses and M.Phil. dissertations are annually contributed by these Universities. University Grants Commission(UGC) is the controlling body for the University education in India. UGC vide minimum standard and procedure for the award of M.Phil./Ph.D. degree regulation 2009, has mandated electronic submission of theses and dissertations under Open Access in its repository-Shodhganga. The e-theses repository known as Shodhganga has been created by Information Library Network Centre, Ahmadabad. About 65,000 e-theses have been deposited to Shodhganga by 231 Universities from India. Only 249 Universities from India have formally joined Shodhganga. Over a million Ph.D. theses and dissertations are available with the Indian Universities. So the process of ETD implementation is slow. Still a long way to go. ETD publishing, open access and embargo are some of the issues responsible for the slow process of electronic theses and dissertations. Besides, as per UGC guidelines, it is mandatory for each researcher to contribute at least one paper in reputed journal. How this policy has helped in enhancing research output of Indian Universities? In the paper efforts will be made to identify various problems faced by Indian Universities in implementing ETD programmes. Various embargo policies adopted in Indian Universities will also be discussed. The efforts should also be made to find out status of other ETD publishing initiatives in Indian Universities. The data will be collected through online questionnaire. However, various secondary sources available through internet may also be referred to gather desired information. Ultimate aim is to present a status report on preservation and access to theses and Dissertations in India.\n

2016