Independence Day Address By the Director, INFLIBNET Centre
Prof Devika P Madalli
Distinguished guests, and dear members of the INFLIBNET family,
It gives me immense pleasure and pride to extend my warm greetings to all of you on the occasion of Independence Day. This is a day of immense significance for every Indian - a day when we celebrate the achievements of our nation, and renew our commitment to building a stronger, more prosperous and knowledge-driven India. It is also a day to remember with respect the remember the sacrifices of our freedom fighters.
As we celebrate this Independence day we remember that On 15 August 1947, India embarked upon a new journey as an independent nation. Our freedom was achieved through the courage, sacrifice and determination of countless men and women. Mahatma Gandhi's message of truth and non-violence, the courage of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, the leadership of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and the contributions of countless known and unknown freedom fighters continue to inspire generations.
Political freedom was only the beginning. The larger task before the nation was - and remains - the creation of a society where every citizen has the opportunity to learn, participate, innovate and contribute. The freedom to access knowledge, to think independently and to pursue new ideas is among the most important dimensions of freedom. In this context that the role of libraries and knowledge institutions becomes especially significant.
Libraries have always been institutions of freedom. They provide people with access to ideas, information and knowledge irrespective of social or economic background. They preserve the intellectual heritage of a nation while simultaneously opening doors to new knowledge.
This vision is closely connected with the mandate of the INFLIBNET Centre. Over the years, INFLIBNET has played an important role in strengthening the information and digital information infrastructure of India's universities and higher education institutions. Through digital libraries, scholarly databases, institutional repositories, discovery services, research information systems and library networking initiatives, INFLIBNET has contributed to making knowledge more accessible to the academic and research community.
Our journey reflects the larger transformation of India - from a nation building its foundational institutions after independence to a digitally connected knowledge society today. It demonstrates that connectivity is not merely technological - it is intellectual. When libraries connect, knowledge connects. When knowledge connects, researchers collaborate. When researchers collaborate, innovation accelerates and Bharat becomes Viksit Bharat.
As India moves towards the vision of Viksit Bharat, the importance of a strong national knowledge infrastructure will become even greater. A developed India cannot be built only through physical infrastructure and economic growth. It must also be built through intellectual or knowledge infrastructure - through universities, research institutions, libraries, digital repositories, open knowledge platforms and systems that enable the creation, preservation, sharing and use of knowledge.
The emerging landscape of Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Machine Learning, quantum technologies and advanced digital infrastructure is transforming the way knowledge is created and consumed. Libraries and information institutions must therefore evolve continuously. We must move from simply providing access to information towards enabling meaningful discovery, knowledge integration and intelligent access.
At the same time, technological advancement brings new responsibilities. We must ensure that digital transformation remains inclusive. The benefits of technology and knowledge should reach institutions and communities across the country, including those that may have fewer resources. Bridging the digital divide must remain an important national priority. We must ensure academic advancement has embedded with research integrity. It is imperative to instill principles of responsible research in every research and INFLIBNET reaffirms its commitment towards strengthening responsible research.
We must also strengthen our commitment to open science and open knowledge. Publicly funded research should, wherever appropriate, become more accessible to society. Open repositories, interoperable systems, persistent identifiers, research data infrastructures and transparent scholarly communication can significantly strengthen India's research ecosystem.
INFLIBNET has an important role to play in this transformation. As a national-level information network, our responsibility extends beyond technology. We are part of a larger national mission to create an interconnected scholarly ecosystem in which knowledge can move seamlessly across institutions, disciplines and geographical boundaries.
INFLIBNET has an important role to play in this transformation. As a national-level information network, our responsibility extends beyond technology. We are part of a larger national mission to create an interconnected scholarly ecosystem in which knowledge can move seamlessly across institutions, disciplines and geographical boundaries.
Our work must therefore be guided by three principles: access, innovation and inclusiveness.
- Access means ensuring that students, teachers and researchers can discover and use the knowledge resources they need.
- Innovation means continuously adopting emerging technologies and developing new services that respond to the changing needs of the academic and research community.
- Inclusiveness means ensuring that the benefits of India's knowledge infrastructure are available to institutions and communities across the country.
On this Independence Day, let us remember that knowledge is one of the most powerful foundations of freedom and national development.
I would also like to express my appreciation to all members of the INFLIBNET family. The work that we undertake - often behind the scenes - is contributing to the larger national endeavour. Every digital service we develop, every library we connect, every repository we strengthen and every researcher we support adds another link to India's knowledge network.
At this juncture as always INFLIBNET has new services and renewed brand new platforms to offer. Just a couple of days ago we unveiled the Inflibnet-ERM beta, the updated feature rich VIDWAN and the upgraded HRD platform . I congratulate my colleagues on all these achievements that are going to enrich our services and their reach further. On the ONOS front the impact is definitely being felt in the scientific and academic communities. We are half mark of the first phase and already engaging in the design and policies for the second phase. The ministry has also entrusted with the One Nation One Data project based on our successful participation and support to the ministry for so many years. I would like to congratulate these teams also and wish them the best.
Dear Colleagues, for the very first time in the history of our centre we have formally collaborated with Gujarat Government. We have seen the successful launch of the Grameen Gyan Setu which is Rural Library Network . It is built to connect rural libraries with well stocked urban libraries and this work was entrusted to us and we executed it in collaboration with the Gujarat Government. The time given to accomplish the entire end-to-end system was very short. It was very hot summer. But still we took on the challenge. Teams went out in the hot sun and physically visited the rural libraries to collect data. The technical team got cracking and in a matter of few days brought up a system and an app where a rural student can search, locate and order books from libraries in Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad and nearby places. The book will be physically delivered by vans to them and returned back to the libraries when they are returned. This is the vision of the Hon'ble Union Home Minister Sh. Amit Bhai Shahji and INFLIBNET is very happy to be part of this noble journey connecting rural students and youth to urban libraries from wherever they are. I would like to congratulate the entire team that contributed to this significant initiative.
As we look towards the future, let us remember the words of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, who placed great emphasis on education as an instrument of social transformation. The message remains profoundly relevant today: education empowers individuals, knowledge strengthens societies, and enlightened citizens strengthen democracies.
On this Independence Day, let us pledge to contribute to an India that is not only economically prosperous and technologically advanced, but also intellectually vibrant, socially inclusive and deeply committed to knowledge.
May INFLIBNET continue to serve as a strong bridge connecting India's libraries, universities, researchers and knowledge communities. May our collective efforts contribute to the vision of a Viksit Bharat - an India that leads through knowledge, innovation and human values.
With these thoughts, I extend my warmest greetings to all members of the INFLIBNET family and their families on this proud occasion.
Let us celebrate our freedom by strengthening the freedoms that knowledge provides - the freedom to learn, the freedom to think, the freedom to innovate and the freedom to create a better future.
Jai Hind!
Jai Bharat!