34 National Information Systems: Services and Products: NISCAIR
R K Verma
I. Objectives
• To get an insight in to the wide variety of activities, resources, projects, and services of NISCAIR – a premier S&T Institute in the field of Information Science in India.
II. Learning Outcome
After reading this module, you will be able to:
• Gain insight in to the various information products, services, resources, and projects of NISCAIR- a premier institute of S&T information in India;
• Understand the various activities of NISCAIR which are helpful in supporting all levels and categories of S&T society; and
• Learn the applications of modern information and communication technology (ICT) in various information products, services, and resources provided by NISCAIR.
III. Structure of Module
1. Introduction
2. Mission and Objectives
3. Information Products and Services
3.1 Bibliometric Service
3.2 Contents, Abstracts, and Photocopy Service (CAPS)
3.3 Foreign Language Translation Service
3.4 Document Copy Supply Service
3.5 Literature Search Service
3.6 Human Resource Development (HRD)
3.6.1 Short-term Training Programmes
3.6.2 On-site Training Programmes
3.7 Consultancy Services
3.8 Research Journals
3.8.1 Online Access to NISCAIR’s Research Journals
3.9 Abstracting Journals
3.9.1 Indian Science Abstracts (ISA, semi-monthly)
3.9.2 Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Abstracts (MAPA, bi-monthly)
3.10 Popular Science Magazines
3.10.1 Science Reporter
3.10.2 Vigyan Pragati
3.10.3 Science Ki Duniya
3.11 R&D Newsletters: CSIR News and CSIR Samachar
3.12 National Prior Art Search Services Facility (NPASF)
3.12.1 Patent Drafting
3.12.2 Prior Art Search
3.12.3 Patent Informatics Service
3.13 International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
3.14 Natural Products Repository
3.15 Editing
4. Information Resources
4.1 National Science Library
4.2 Wealth of India (WOI)
4.3 Bharat Ki Sampada
4.4 Scholarly Books & Monographs
4.5 Popular Science Books
4.5.1 IT for All
4.6 Raw Material Herbarium & Museum
4.7 National Union Catalogue of Scientific Serials in India (NUCSSI)
5. Projects
5.1 Science Communication through Multimedia (SCM)
5.2 National Knowledge Resources Consortium (NKRC)
5.3 Digital Information Resource Facility (DIRF) Data Centre
5.4 CSIR Knowledge Gate Network Project
6. Summary
7. References
1. Introduction
National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (NISCAIR), New Delhi, came into existence on 30 September 2002 after the merger of National Institute of Science Communication (NISCOM) and Indian National Scientific Documentation Centre (INSDOC). Both NISCOM and INSDOC, the two premier institutes of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), were devoted to dissemination and documentation of Scientific and Technological (S&T) information.
INSDOC was established in the year 1952 and was engaged in providing S&T information and documentation services through many activities such as abstracting and indexing, design and development of databases, translation, library automation, providing access to international information sources, human resource development, and consultancy services in setting up modern library-cum-information centres. Besides these activities, INSDOC was also host to the National Science Library (NSL) and the SAARC Documentation Centre. On the other hand, erstwhile NISCOM came into being with the renaming of the Publications and Information Directorate (PID) in 1996. PID was formed by merging two separate publication units, viz., Dictionary of Indian Raw Materials and Economic Products, renamed as Wealth of India (1948) and Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research, instituted in 1942.Over the years, NISCOM diversified its activities, and through a host of its information products, comprising research and popular science journals, encyclopaedic publications, monographs, books, and information services, it had been reaching out to researchers, students, entrepreneurs, industrialists, agriculturists, policy planners and also the common man.
With the formation of NISCAIR, all the above multi-faceted activities have been combined, making NISCAIR, an institute capable of serving the society using modern IT infrastructure in a more effective manner and taking up new ventures in the field of science communication, dissemination and S&T information management systems and services. Broadly, the core activity of NISCAIR is to collect/store, publish and disseminate S&T information through traditional and modern means for the benefit of various segments of society. NISCAIR is one of the premier institutes of Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) serving the society using modern IT infrastructure. Since its inception, it has been laying emphasis on the benefits of information technology to effectively serve the national and international community and to be an institution of international standard and repute. The concerned areas are: knowledge networking, databases on natural resources, science communication, science popularization and S&T information management systems and services.
With a view to understanding various activities of NISCAIR, the same have been categorized under the main headings as Information Products and Services; Information resources; and Projects. A description of these activities is presented in this module.
2. Mission and Objectives
The mission of NISCAIR is to become the prime custodian of all information resources on current and traditional knowledge systems in science and technology in the country, and to promote communication in science to diverse constituents at all levels, using the most appropriate technologies. Its mandate and objectives are:
• To provide formal linkages of communication among the scientific community in the form of research journals in different areas of S&T;
• To disseminate S&T information to general public, particularly school students in order to inculcate interest in science among them;
• To collect, collate and disseminate information on plant, animal and mineral wealth of the country;
• To harness information technology applications in information management with particular reference to science communication and modernizing libraries;
• To act as a facilitator in furthering the economic, social, industrial, scientific and commercial development by providing timely access to relevant and accurate information;
• To develop human resources in science communication, library, documentation and information science and S&T information management systems and services; and
• To collaborate with international institutions and organizations having objectives and goals similar to those of NISCAIR.
3. Information Products and Services
3.1 Bibliometric Service
Bibliometric services are carried out for studying growth, development and spread of any area of research, and also for identifying centres of excellence, influential authors, etc. The services are useful for heads of departments/institutions, research planners, policy makers and individual scientists. These services include Citation analysis, Impact factor, Bibliometric analysis, and Multifaceted Bibliometric analysis, etc.
3.2 Contents, Abstracts, and Photocopy Service (CAPS)
CAPS is an innovative personalised information service provided by NISCAIR. A list of over 7,000 core journals in various disciplines has been identified. The researchers are required to select from this list (available free, on request) the journals of their choice. After going through the table of contents, researchers can receive the abstract or full text of desired articles through NISCAIR’s Document Copy Supply Service.
3.3 Foreign Language Translation Service
NISCAIR provides translation of S&T documents from 20 foreign languages into English. The languages include Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Rumanian, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish, Swedish, etc. The clients include National Laboratories, S&T institutes, R&D Organisations, Corporate and Public Sector Undertakings, Universities, Research Scholars, etc.
NISCAIR also provides reverse translation, i.e., English into foreign language. Translation of English text of maximum of one page into French, German, Russian and Spanish is undertaken. For Japanese language, translation of full English documents is undertaken, besides interpretation and consultancy assignments in this language.
Recently, ongoing S&T translation services have been initiated. The languages covered are: Chinese, French, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish
3.4 Document Copy Supply Service
NISCAIR provides this service to the Indian scientific community by supplying copies of articles from Indian and foreign journals. Copies of Indian and foreign patents and standards can also be obtained from NISCAIR.
3.5 Literature Search Service
NISCAIR offers literature search service and compiles bibliographies on demand from indigenous as well as from international databases in the areas of S&T, engineering, industry, etc.
3.6 Human Resource Development(HRD)
NISCAIR with necessary facilities and man power trains and prepares science communicators, R&D personnel, and library and information science professionals for meeting the challenges of current times. NISCAIR’s HRD Programmes are categorized as follows:
3.6.1 Short-term Training Programmes
NISCAIR conducts short term courses in the field of Library and Information Science and other related areas. These pertain to Information technology for information management, Office automation, Bibliometric tools, Library automation and networking, Digital libraries, and Science communication,
3.6.2 On-site Training Programmes
Under this programme, NISCAIR organizes training courses as per requirements of the clients at their premises subject to minimum 10 and maximum 25 participants respectively.
3.7 Consultancy Services
NISCAIR provides consultancy services in the areas of automation, modernization and reorganization of libraries and information centres; design and development of specialized databases for organizations on turnkey basis; editing, designing, production and printing; and publication jobs.
3.8 Research Journals
3.8.1 Online Access to NISCAIR’s Research Journals
NISCAIR has been able to host online its research journals through a solution called “NISCAIR ONLINE PERIODICALS REPOSITORY (NOPR)” which is implemented based on the open source digital repository system software. All the 18 research journals of NISCAIR have been added under open access mode for accessing full text [http://nopr.niscair.res.in]. Research communities, including students not only in India but all over the world, are being benefited by open access availability of NISCAIR journals. Current issues of all the research journals are published in NOPR for open access well before the publication of print version. The repository has data spanning from 2007 till current issues and for some journals from 2002 onwards. The repository contains around 6400 articles. Further, to increase visibility of NISCAIR journals, all the journals are registered with Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Registry of Open Access Repositories (ROAR), Directory of Open Access Repositories (DOAR), Google Analytics and all of the prominent search engines. The list of 18 research journals published by NISCAIR is available on its website.
3.9 Abstracting Journals
3.9.1 Indian Science Abstracts (ISA, semi-monthly)
ISA is a semi-monthly abstracting journal reporting current Indian scientific work published in India and abroad. It reports scientific work done in India since 1965. Original research articles, short communications, review articles, and informative articles published in current scientific and technical periodicals, proceedings of conferences and symposia, monographs and other publications, as well as patents, standards and theses are reported in ISA. Besides the print version, ISA is now available online and its various issues from the year 2004 can be browsed.
3.9.2 Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Abstracts (MAPA, bi-monthly)
MAPA is a bimonthly abstracting journal covering world literature on agronomy, botany, pharmacognosy, and biological activities of medicinal and aromatic plants. MAPA is produced by scanning, selecting and abstracting relevant papers from about 600 primary journals published from about 65 countries and in 25 languages, research reports, conference proceedings and patents. Each issue and volume of MAPA is supported by a keyword index. From 1988 onwards, MAPA is available on CD-ROM also.
3.10 Popular Science Magazines
NISCAIR publishes three well-circulated popular science magazines, viz. Science Reporter (English, monthly), Vigyan Pragati (Hindi, monthly) and Science-ki-Duniya (Urdu, quarterly). These magazines publish informative popular science articles on contemporary science topics apart from a rich flare that includes humour and fiction, puzzles, quizzes and crosswords, amazing scientific facts, inventions and discoveries, science projects and biographies of scientists.
3.10.1 Science Reporter
Science Reporter is one of the oldest English language popular science monthlies published in India since 1964. From its initial objective of making the people of India aware of the innumerable technologies being developed within our scientific establishments, Science Reporter has today grown into being much more than just a vehicle for relaying information about technologies being developed in the national laboratories. Presently, it is a popular platform for exchanging ideas about the state of science in the country, matters of science policy, and discussing the future course that science in India should take. Besides, it is also a one-stop solution for students on the lookout for latest updates from the world of science. They find in Science Reporter a comprehensive package of information, which helps them not only during competitive exams but also throughout their careers.
3.10.2 Vigyan Pragati
In 1952, the publication of Vigyan Pragati was started as a newsletter disseminating information on scientific research carried out in the CSIR institutes. Subsequently, it was converted into a popular science magazine to inculcate scientific temper among the common people, helping them to remove superstitions. Since then, in consonance with its title Vigyan Pragati, it is continuously making people aware of the progress science is making.
3.10.3 Science Ki Duniya
Started in 1975, Science-ki-Duniya is the only Indian popular science journal in Urdu. Over the period, this quarterly journal has published articles by various eminent scientists such as Prof. Abdus Salam (Nobel Laureate), Prof. D.S. Kothari, Prof. A.R. Kidwai, Prof. A.M. Khusro, Dr.Kishan Lal, Prof. M. Shafi and Prof. A. Rahman. It provides a package of varied columns such as Science Quiz, Science Models, Crime and Science, Cartoons, Science News, and Science for Children apart from other topical and absorbing articles in each issue.
3.11 R&D Newsletters: CSIR News and CSIR Samachar
NISCAIR brings out two newsletters viz. CSIR News (in English) and CSIR Samachar (in Hindi). CSIR news is fortnightly, while CSIR Samachar is a monthly. The purpose of these publications is to create an effective link between various CSIR constituents and users of information on various R&D programs and other activities of CSIR, other R&D organizations, university departments and industry. R&D programs include new processes and products developed, programs undertaken, collaborative projects, sponsored projects and consultancies. In addition, news on technology demonstrations, marketing, transfer of technology, Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), etc. are also covered. S&T activities include conferences, seminars, workshops, training programs, honours and awards, appointments of CSIRDirectors, etc.
3.12 National Prior Art Search Services Facility (NPASF)
NISCAIR has instituted NPASF for the benefit of researchers, inventors, scientists of national research facilities and science planners. Under NPASF, the following services are provided:
3.12.1 Patent Drafting
Under this service, professionals help in the preparation of patent drafts enabling complete description of the embodiment of a process, machine, matter is provided. This is done as per technical requirements, viz. title, cross references, background, summary, description (both brief and detailed), claims, abstract, and sequence listing.
3.12.2 Prior Art Search
Under the Prior Art Search facility, one can reveal prior inventions that bear close resemblance to any patent or non-patent literature. A search is conducted on patent literature, product literature, research journals and databases. One can obtain search and analysis report for proposed idea/query with respect to their novelty and inventiveness. This helps in filing of patent application or initiating new research proposals.
3.12.3 Patent Informatics Service
Patent Informatics is the analysis of multiple patent data at macro level. Under this service, analysis is carried out on large volumes of patent data in order to have an idea about the technology landscape. This results in unearthing of strengths and weaknesses of technologies, markets and portfolios. This helps in policy decisions, R&D strategy, technical auditing and investment decisions
3.13 International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
NISCAIR’s National Science Library (NSL) is the National Centre of the ISSN International Centre for assigning ISSN numbers for serials published in India. ISSN is a worldwide identification code used by publishers, suppliers, libraries, information services, bar coding systems, union catalogues, etc. for citation and retrieval of serials such as Journals, Newspapers, Newsletters, Directories, Yearbooks, Annual Reports and Monograph series, etc. ISSN is useful in international publicity and recognition as the concerned serial is automatically included in the International Serials Directory Database. ISSN International Centre is a network with its Headquarters at Paris.
3.14 Natural Products Repository
NISCAIR has launched a quarterly online open access repository entitled, Natural Product and Resources Repository (NPARR) from 2010. It plans to include abstracts of papers along with citation and correspondence address through collection and collation from various core and non- core journals. There is also a provision for authors for sending soft copies of abstracts of their published papers, technologies/know-how developed at their institute/university (during current year) for including under respective group of products/technologies
3.15 Editing
NISCAIR provides editorial services for Conference Proceedings, Scholarly Books, Popular Science Books, etc. for other organizations on man-hour basis. Editing jobs cover content editing as well as copy editing and stylization.
4. Information Resources
One of the core activities of NISCAIR is to collect, organize and disseminate S&T information generated in India as well as in the world which has relevance to Indian S&T community. Under this programme, the institute is building comprehensive collection of S&T publications in print as well as in electronic form and disseminating through traditional as well as modern means benefiting various segments of the society. Major resources under this activity are Wealth of India, Bharat Ki Sampada, National Science Library, Scholarly books and Monographs, Popular science books, Indigenous Databases, National Union Catalogue of Scientific Serials in India, and Raw Materials Herbarium and Museum. A brief description of these resources is provided below.
4.1 National Science Library
NSL has a comprehensive collection of S&T publications in the country and is offering services on a national scale. It also acts as a referral centre and clearing house for the best utilisation of the existing collection in the country. Set up in 1964, NSL aims at acquiring all important S&T publications published in the country and strengthening its resource base for foreign periodicals by acquiring the journals on CD-ROM or other electronic form as far as possible. NSL has a rich collection of over 2,40,000 volumes including monographs and bound volumes of journals in the various fields. Its print resources include-reference material/secondary sources in most of the fields of science and technology, information technology, library and information science, proceedings of conferences/seminars/symposia held in the field of science and technology in and outside the country; foreign language dictionaries; Indian scientific and technical periodicals; important foreign serials in the field of science and technology; specialized collection in the field of information science and library studies; and reports of R&D organizations. The services of NSL include- OPAC, E-journals, and ISSN besides routine activities of a library. NSL provides its scientists/members/users the facility to access/browse and download any paper for their use from 4256 international e-journals published by 16 publishers/societies (as per details provided in other section on NKRC). Besides this, users have access to over 2500 open access journals. (Students are advised to visit official Web site of NISCAIR for current details)
4.2 Wealth of India (WOI)
WOI is an authoritative reference standard for information on raw materials of India particularly in the current global trend to incorporate traditional knowledge systems into the proprietary mainstream. It is also a ready reckoner for researchers, entrepreneurs, plant-based industrialists and policy makers. Policy-planners use the information to prevent bio-piracy. It has in the recent past played a major role in India’s claim for priority in the US patent case on turmeric. WOI is considered as an encyclopaedic series on India’s raw material resources of plants, animals and minerals, details their occurrence, distribution, description, composition, utilization and trade. The series, known for its authenticity, is the essence of information scattered in a wide range of information sources. Each resource profile is a monographic presentation beginning with the correct nomenclature, the known names in vernacular, gives a brief description, chief areas of distribution in India, broad parameters of cultivation in case of plants, pathological problems in case of plants and animals, chemical constituents, products, utilization, production, consumption (in case of minerals), and trade data.
4.3 Bharat Ki Sampada
NISCAIR brings out wide range of Hindi publications ranging from research journals to popular science books and magazines. With continuous increase in the wealth of information and IT revolution with relevance to dissemination of science in Hindi, the role of NISCAIR has become all the more significant. Bharati Ki Sampada – Prakritik Padarth is an encyclopaedia on Indian raw materials based on flora, fauna and minerals, in which the entries appear in Devnagari alphabetical order. A series publication of 12 volumes and two supplements, Bharat Ki Sampada is the Hindi version of The Wealth of India – Raw Materials series with a difference in subject matter, volume-wise. Prepared by the experts, the articles in Bharat Ki Sampada series cover those plants, animals and minerals which render medicines, food products, beverages, fruits, nuts, spices & condiments, fats & oils, essential oils, masticatory, fumigatory, fibre, pulp, wood, and forest products, etc Each entry in its series provides correct identification of plants and their scientific and vernacular names, in addition to relevant references, and index on the names in Indian languages. Articles on crop plants cover the aspects pertaining to cultivation, harvesting, storage, diseases and pests and their control, etc. For raw materials, the series covers information on the occurrence in the country, data about their production, yield, import and export.
4.4 Scholarly Books & Monographs
NISCAIR publishes comprehensive state-of-the-art reports on specialized subjects for the benefit of research scientists and academicians. The details of various publications are available on the NISCAIR website.
NISCAIR has brought out as many as 60 popular science books in English under different series, viz. CSIR Golden Jubilee Series (25), Sci-Fun Series (7), Q-series (3), Vistas in Biotechnology Series (10), Foundations of Biotechnology Series (6), Others (9), AIDS, Science and Society in the 21st century, Healthcare Education & IT, The Road Ahead and the encyclopaedic publication Golden Treasury of Science and Technology (New Enlarged Diamond Jubilee Edition). Also 28 books have been brought out in Hindi.
4.5.1 IT for All
The institute has launched a new series of books on ‘IT for All’. Topics of these books include Microsoft Word for Beginners, Microsoft Power Point, Web dot Com, Build your web home, C++ for beginners, The ‘C’ Adventure, Visual Basic. Apart from English, all the seven books are available in Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, Kannada, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, Bengali, and Malayalam.
4.6 Raw Material Herbarium & Museum
With a view to catering the needs of scientists, researchers, industrialists, students and the public at large, NISCAIR has set up a Herbarium and Museum. It houses economically important raw materials of plant, animal and mineral origin from India at one place. The Herbarium houses over 8000 specimen of economic and medicinal plants of India and the Museum comprises over 3000 samples of crude-drugs, animal and mineral specimens. The NISCAIR Herbarium & Museum has been assigned the acronym RHMD (Raw Materials Herbarium & Museum, Delhi) by the International Association for Plant Taxonomy, which appeared in the publication ‘Index Herbarium, New York, USA (1990)’. The herbarium provides information on folk-lore, ethno- medicine and traditional medicine and is a source of knowledge for development of new herbal medicines.
4.7 National Union Catalogue of Scientific Serials in India (NUCSSI)
NUCSSI is one of the oldest services of NISCAIR and its database serves as an ideal tool to access journal holdings information. It is a data repository of a large number of unique journal titles and library holdings belonging to major universities, S&T institutions, R&D units of industries, higher institutes like Indian Institute of Science (IIS), IITs and professional institutes spread all over the country. NUCSSI provides information regarding the availability of journal titles in the libraries. Regular updation of the database is enhanced with the online access granted to the participating libraries via internet, so that users may get the updated information free of cost. Further, a user friendly interface and powerful search enables easy and improved access to locate a particular journal and its availability in various libraries. Regarding its statistics, so far a total of 45541 journals have been listed, total holdings are 264834, while total participating libraries are 564.
5. Projects
5.1 Science Communication through Multimedia (SCM)
Established in 2010, SCM-Division is responsible for communication of science through multimedia. The mandate of the division is three fold viz. to carry out research in the area of scientific temper, public understanding of science and communication of science; to collate existing audio-visual material and generate fresh content using multimedia and make it accessible to the public at large; and to interact with common citizens, scholars, experts and institutions on issues of science and science communication. The Division is engaged in carrying out research in the area of development of communication models, probing the shifts of conceptual models, indicators and tools for measuring public understanding of science and scientific temper and administering survey studies among public.
SCM Division has constructed a CSIR-NISCAIR-Tube, a platform to collect all the science films that have been produced by CSIR labs and other science departments in the country. There is also a provision for individuals to approach NISCAIR to upload material which is being produced in the country including their power-point presentations. The content generated by SCM division is also uploaded regularly on the CSIR-NISCAIR-Tube.
As a new initiative, the SCM Division is planning to take up a series of activities to connect to the larger audience. For example, CSIR-NISCAIR Social Networking site is being constructed to provide better, efficient and fast interaction between the scientists. This platform is also likely to connect the scientist with the public where a common citizen could pose questions, which could be directed to a scientist or a group of scientists for providing explanation.
5.2 National Knowledge Resources Consortium (NKRC)
With a view to strengthening R&D in CSIR laboratories, NISCAIR has developed a “Consortium for CSIR Laboratories for Accessing e-journals” as its nodal agency. The activity ranges from creation to monitoring of the access facility of scientific periodicals published by leading international institutions. Under this scheme, CSIR scientists are able to access these journals and download material for their use.
The National Knowledge Resource Consortium (NKRC), established in year 2009, is a network of libraries and information centres of 39 CSIR and 24 DST institutes. NKRC’s origin goes back to the year 2001, when the CSIR set up the Electronic Journals Consortium to provide access to 1200 odd journals of Elsevier Science to all its users. Over a period of time, the Consortium has grown in terms of the number of resources and also in terms of the number of users as more and more institutes haveshown their interest to join the Consortium. Currently, NKRC facilitates access to 5,000+ e-journals of all major publishers, patents, standards, citation and bibliographic databases. Apart from licensed resources, NKRC is also a single point entity that provides its users with access to a multitude of open access resources.
5.3 Digital Information Resource Facility (DIRF) Data Centre
NISCAIR is functioning at two separate locations viz. Pusa location and Satsang Vihar Marg with 250 and 360 nodes respectively having 4 Mbps Leased Line Internet connectivity. The volume of data, being managed at NISCAIR, in the form of Databases and CDs, is in Tera Bytes with an exponential growth. NISCAIR also acts as repository on Library and Analytical facilities under CSIR. With new ICT tools, the knowledge repositories are growing at exponential rates and require massive and updated capabilities for management of information resources and services including hosting and sharing. Further, NISCAIR scientists are making use of the IT Infrastructure for data transfer, communication, exchange of manuscripts and data with authors and referees. The services and data hosted on serversare in unorganized manner without any redundant infrastructure, major security and archival/backup facility. This has significantly impacted level and quality of NISCAIR’s services. With a view to overcome the existing constraints, NISCAIR has proposed to set up a project on Digital Information Resource Facility (DIRF), as an integrated facility. The focus of the facility is to provide uninterrupted, authorized and secure access to NISCAIR and CSIR Resources to the scientific community and researchers all over the world. After the establishment of DIRF all these applications will be migrated on the servers kept in Data Centre in coordination with NISCAIR. The project, setting up of Digital Information Resource Facility (DIRF) has a single focus on setting up an integrated state-of-art facility for managing and sharing digital information resources of CSIR. Its main Objectives are:
• Managing and securing the digital assets systems created by NISCAIR
• Providing uninterrupted data services.
• Providing long-term scalable storage infrastructure.
• Managing high volume of incoming and outgoing content.
• Streamlining net-centric operations, and
• Providing authorized and secure access. (Remote & Local Both)
5.4 CSIR Knowledge Gate Network Project
CSIR Knowledge Gateway & Open Source Private Cloud Infrastructure (KNOWGATE) is 12th Five Year Plan (FYP) Network Project under Information Sciences cluster. The project would be implemented in phased manner by dividing CSIR KRCs (Knowledge Resource Centres) in four groups a network mode by CSIR-NISCAIR as nodal laboratory. Participating laboratories include CSIR-M Complex & CSIR-HQ. Its Objectives are:
• To enhance the capacity and capability of CSIR computing power through CSIR private cloud infrastructure and Open Source Software Technology Solution Cell (OSSTSC),
• To provide CSIR KRCs an Integrated Library Management Solution using open source Software,
• To share information resources among CSIR laboratories by creating CSIR Distributed Library: catalogue sharing, inter library loans, & referral service for document supply service, and
• To analyse CSIR research, technology and related data using multi-dimensional analysis.
6. Summary
National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (NISCAIR) came into existence on 30 September 2002 after the merger of National Institute of Science Communication (NISCOM) and Indian National Scientific Documentation Centre (INSDOC). Both NISCOM and INSDOC, the two premier institutes of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), were devoted to dissemination and documentation of S&T information. The core activity of NISCAIR is to collect/store, publish and disseminate S&T information through traditional and modern means, for the benefit of different segments of society. With a view to understand various activities of NISCAIR, the same have been categorized under the main headings as Information Products and Services; Information resources; and Projects. Information Products and Services include Bibliometric service; Contents, Abstracts, and Photocopy service (CAPS); Foreign language Translation Service; Document Copy supply service; Literature search service; Short-term and on-site training programmes; Consultancy services; the publications ofResearch Journals; and abstracting journals viz. Indian Science Abstracts, and Medicinal & Aromatic Plants Abstracts and their online access facility; Popular science magazines viz. Science reporter, Vigyan Pragati, and Science ki Duniya; R&D newsletters: CSIR news and CSIR Samachar; National Prior Art Search Services Facility; International Standard Serial Number facility, and Natural Products Repository. Under the information resources the activities of National Science Library, the compilation and publication of Wealth of India, Bharat ki Sampada, Scholarly books and monographs, popular science books are covered besides Raw Material herbarium & Museum and National Union Catalogue of Scientific Serials in India (NUCSSI) facilities. Finally a short description of four major projects has been presented. These projects are entitled as Science Communication through Multimedia; National Knowledge Resources Consortium; Digital Information Resources Facility (DIRF) Data Centre; and CSIR Knowledge Gate Network Project.
7. References
- NISCAIR Annual Report 2008-10, New Delhi: National Institute of Sciencve Communication and Information Resources
- http://www.niscair.res.in/