With schools across India facing indefinite closure due to the coronavirus pandemic, many children across cities have been cooped up at home. As the country heads toward a lockdown with several state governments such as Maharashtra calling for a ban on the congregation of more than five people to restrict the spread of coronavirus, both children and adults may need to prepare for the most constructive and entertaining ways to spend their time in isolation. But to solve the problem, at least in part, Amar Chitra Katha has come up with a novel solution.

The publishing house which has for years entertained children with its ACK and Tinkle comic book series has decided to offer a 30-day free subscription to their entire archive. The move is meant to provide relief to children stuck at homes and cut off from social interaction for days on end.

Preeti Vyas, President from ACK told The News Minute that the move was meant as "gift" from the publishing house to the "children of India" as it was "the little we can do to help ease this challenging environment we suddenly find ourselves in".

Since a lot of you were having issues activating our free 1 month subscription, here’s a step-by-step guide. For FREE access to the ACK app, click here: https://t.co/D3rWy5mQECFor FREE access to the #TinkleApp, click here: https://t.co/OiLl1rKJo4#ReadingIsGood #ACKComicsApp pic.twitter.com/foAbtYNbQT — Amar Chitra Katha (@ACKComics) March 17, 2020

The ACK catalogue would be free to access till March 31 and would include over a hundred Tinkle Magazines and over 350 Amar Chitra Katha books that can be read on phones and tabs. The move has been receiving a lot of love on social media. Netizens also recalled how the publishing house, which was started in 1967 by Anand Pai, played an important part in their childhood.

Ideal for the coronavirus-led social distancing, particularly for kids who are stuck at home during holidays: Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle are offering their entire catalog free, till March 31st! Amar Chitra Katha: https://t.co/iWc4xUGbhfTinkle: https://t.co/Q8j0C25T0k pic.twitter.com/DZDJU2F2Cf — Karthik (@beastoftraal) March 17, 2020

Spent many summer holidays in the early 80s with Amar Chitra Katha comics. Used to be Rs 1.50 if I am not wrong then. My love for history was a result of that. https://t.co/pfVEhdb5L7 — Kalyan Karmakar (@Finelychopped) March 18, 2020

If you are into myths and legends, then the free subscription for Amar Chitra Katha here (with android and ios apps) is one of the best ways to get familiar with Indian myths and legends in a Comic format. These were a big part of my childhood so am happy to plug these in the https://t.co/mXoX7rrtgh — opdroid1234 (@opdroid1234) March 18, 2020

As a child, I used to shit-scared of one particular Amar Chitra Katha title. It was called 'Nagananda' based on a play written by King Harshavardhana. It is a Buddhist legend, where the story is of Jimutavahana who sacrifices himself to Garuda as part of the story. The scene... pic.twitter.com/vIUebMigvd — Karthik (@beastoftraal) March 17, 2020

I used to religiously buy Tinkle every month and had a decent collection of Amar Chitra Katha as well.What amazing news in these times. https://t.co/TYma4dht2y — Manan Bhan (@maybeEcosystems) March 18, 2020

In gloomy times like these, when kids are packed at home and parents hvin tough tym, Amar Chitra Katha has come out with a great offer. 1 month free subscription of their Tinkle magazine and ACK series on their digital platforms. Mke the best use of it. pic.twitter.com/3SzcMdt4Js — Dipika Bajpai (@dipika_bajpai) March 19, 2020

WWOWWW...If Uncle Pai would have been around, he would have done the same thing.This is actually the best thing everParents, Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle have made their pull catalogue free for a month..Please introduce this to your kids.To Shikari Shambhu and all his pals https://t.co/V6xGZgcsss — LCA TEJAS (INDIA) ‏‏ایل سی اے تیجس (@Leopard212) March 18, 2020

The first Tinkle magazine was published in 1980 and has since been popular among Indian children and adolescents. With its varied collection of mythological and fantasy stories, AKC has been a pioneer in Hindi children's literature in India.