The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has set-up the “Indian National Digital Library in Science and Technology (INDEST) Consortium”. The Ministry provides funds required for subscription to electronic resources for 38 institutions including IISc, IITs, NITs, RECs, IIMs and a few other centrally-funded Government institutions through the consortium headquarters set-up at the IIT Delhi. Besides, 60 Government or Government-aided engineering colleges and technical departments in universities have joined the Consortium with financial support from the AICTE. Moreover, the INDEST Consortium, as an open-ended proposition, welcomes other institutions to join it on their own for sharing benefits it offers in terms of highly discounted rates of subscription and better terms of agreement with the publishers. All electronic resources being subscribed are available from the publisher’s Website. The Consortium has an active mailing list and a Web site hosted at the IIT Bombay.

The INDEST Consortium is the most ambitious initiative taken so far in the country. The benefit of consotia-based subscription to electronic resources is not confined to 38 major technological institutions in the country but is also extended to all AICTE-accredited and UGC-affiliated institutions.