Patiala: The Punjabi Wikimedians User Group urged the Punjab govt in Patiala to ensure free and open access to books and official documents produced using public funds, and appealed to chief minister Bhagwant Mann to introduce a policy mandating that such material be released under open licences.Coordinator Kuldeep Burj Bhalaike and volunteer media advisor Aman Arora said knowledge was a shared social resource and should not remain restricted. They said govt-published books, research papers and reports should be made available online in digital formats to benefit students, researchers and educators.They said the Government Open Data License India already underlined the need for making govt data freely accessible. Citing examples, they said states such as Tamil Nadu and Odisha had taken steps to release publicly funded content under open licences, setting a precedent for others.The group demanded that Punjab adopt a clear policy to ensure that all content produced by govt and semi-govt institutions was made available under open licences without restrictions. They also expressed willingness to help disseminate such material globally through Wikimedia platforms, contributing to the digital growth of the Punjabi language.A memorandum in this regard was submitted to Tejinder Mehta, chairman, District Planning Committee, Patiala.
