About NISSAT - Librarians Portal

NISSAT 

In 1971, the Government of India requested UNESCO to advise on the establishment of an information network for science and technology in the country. In 1972, Dr. Peter Lazer, a consultant, submitted a report on NISSAT. In 1973, the panel of the National Committee on Science and Technology (NCST) recommended establishing NISSAT under the Department of Science and Technology (DST). 

Programme was launched by Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), with the broad objective of interlinking and coordinating a large number of information sources, systems and services into an effective network under an overall coordinating agency. The NISSAT programme was formally implemented in September 1977. The National Focal Point (NFP) of NISSAT was located in DSIR, New Delhi. It was operational from 1977-2002. During its 25 years of operation.

 NISSAT programme achieved the following:

1) Setting up of Information Centres: NISSAT supported 13 national information and data centres

2) Setting up of Value Added Patent Information Systems (VAPIS): NISSAT established VAPIS in two areas viz. chemistry and chemical technology (at National Chemical Laboratory, Pune) and in engineering (at Central Manufacturing Technology Institute, Bangalore)

3) National Access Centres to International Data Services (NACIDS)

4) CD-ROM National Collection Centre: NISSAT supported national collection of CD-ROM databases on India and CD-ROM products produced in India. The centre was set up at Foundation for Innovations and Technology Transfer in Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi in 1996. The Centre rendered services from CD-ROM collection. This centre has stopped functioning since 2003.

5) Computers and Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) Based Activities: DELNET, CALIBNET, BONET, PUNENET, ADINET, MYLIBNET ; Indian Ocean Server at NIO, Goa, Indian Consultancy website at CDC, New Delhi, ‘Vigyan’, an Indian S&T website, and a discussion forum called ‘LISFORUM’ with NSCI at Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore

6) Promotion of Use of Standards: NISSAT campaign supported with training, helped CCF (Common Communication Format) to earn the status of a de facto national standard for exchange of information, creation of databases, etc

7) Information Technology Applications: NISSAT acquired two software packages namely CDS/ISIS (for bibliographical processing and retrieval) and IDAMS (for statistical data processing), from UNESCO for distribution to Indian institutions. NISSAT in collaboration with DESIDOC, developed a software package SANJAY, for automation of house-keeping and service functions of libraries. NISSAT published a quarterly newsletter, NISSAT Newsletter (the title changed to Information Today & Tomorrow), suspended in 2002