Indian Institutes of Technology

The Indian Institutions of Technology, sometimes known simply as IITs, are a network of highly regarded public technical institutes that are owned and operated by India's central government. They are under the control of the Ministry of Education of the Government of India, which is why they are so well-respected in the field of education. They are controlled by the Institutes of Technology Act, which was passed in 1961. This act designates them as Institutes of National Importance and lays out their powers, responsibilities, and governance structure as the most prestigious institutions in the nation working in the area of technology. There are now twenty-three IITs listed under the statute. Each institute of technology has its own autonomy and is connected to the other IITs by a common council known as the IIT Council, which is in charge of administering the institutes. The Indian Institute of Technology Council is presided over by the Indian Minister of Education in their official capacity.

At the now, there are a total of 23 IITs located around the nation.

The history of the IIT system can be traced back to nearly the year 1946, when Sir Jogendra Singh, a member of the Viceroy's Executive Council, established a committee. The committee's mission was to investigate the possibility of establishing Higher Technical Institutions in India in order to facilitate the country's post-war industrial development.

Following in the footsteps of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the 22-person committee, chaired by Nalini Ranjan Sarkar, made the recommendation to establish these institutions across various regions of India, each of which would be affiliated with other secondary educational facilities.

In May of 1950, the first Indian Institute of Technology was established in the city of Kharagpur, in the state of West Bengal. This location had previously served as the Hijli Detention Camp. Prior to the official opening of the Indian Institute of Technology on August 18, 1951 by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the name "Indian Institute of Technology" was chosen for the institution.