The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are a group of autonomous engineering and technology-oriented institutes of higher education. The IITs are governed by the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 which has declared them as “institutions of national importance”, and lays down their powers, duties, framework for governance etc. They were created to train scientists and engineers, with the aim of developing a skilled workforce to support the economic and social development of India. IITs are listed as societies under the Indian Societies Registration Act.

The 1961 act lists seven institutes, which are, in order of establishment, IIT Kharagpur in Kharagpur (1950; as IIT 1951), IIT Bombay in Mumbai (1958), IIT Madras in Chennai (1959), IIT Kanpur in Kanpur (1959), IIT Delhi in New Delhi (1961; as IIT 1963), IIT Guwahati in Guwahati (1994) and IIT Roorkee in Roorkee (1847; as IIT 2001).

In addition to the seven IITs, The Institutes of Technology (Amendment) Act, 2011 added nine new institutes to the list. Of these, eight are new institutes, in order of establishment, IIT Ropar in Rupnagar (2008), IIT Bhubaneswar in Bhubaneswar (2008), IIT Gandhinagar in Gandhinagar (2008), IIT Hyderabad in Hyderabad (2008), IIT Patna in Patna (2008), IIT Rajasthan in Rajasthan (2008), IIT Mandi in Mandi (2009) and IIT Indore in Indore (2009). These IITs were registered as societies and are in various stages of consolidation and development. The ninth is Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University (IT-BHU), which was a faculty under the administration of Banaras Hindu University is now named Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University) Varanasi, abbreviated IIT (BHU) Varanasi. The bill was approved by the Indian Cabinet on 25 February 2011, and passed by the Lok Sabha on 24 March 2011 and by the Rajya Sabha on 30 April 2011, making the new IITs capable of granting degrees.

Institute of technology is a designation employed in a wide range of learning institutions awarding different types of degrees and operating often at variable levels of the educational system. It may be a world renowned institution of higher education and advanced engineering and scientific research or professional vocational education, specializing in science, engineering, and technology or different sorts of technical subjects. It may also refer to a secondary education school focused in vocational training.

The term polytechnic comes from the Greek πολύ (polú or polý) meaning "many" and τεχνικός (tekhnikós) meaning "arts". The term institute of technology, for its part, is often abbreviated IT; the term is not to be confused with information technology.

While the terms institute of technology and polytechnic are synonymous, the preference concerning which one is the preferred term varies from country to country.

The Indian Institute in central Oxford, England is located at the north end of Catte Street on the corner with Holywell Street and facing down Broad Street from the east. Sir Monier Monier-Williams started the Institute at Oxford in 1883 to provide training for the Indian Civil Services.

In June 1881, plans were submitted to the University of Oxford's Hebdomadal Council to build an Indian Institute. The original site was occupied by four old buildings. The building was designed by Basil Champneys. Originally there was a low shop to the south, but Hertford College has now encroached on the Institute with a much taller building.

The Indian Institute Library opened in 1886. It is a dependent library of the Bodleian Library, the main library of the University. It specialises in the history and culture of South Asia, especially the Himalayas and Tibet. The library was formerly located in the Indian Institute building, but is now close by, on the top floor of the New Bodleian Library. Along with the library, the institute contained lecture rooms and a museum. Some contents of the museum are now present in the Ashmolean. The original Indian Institute building is now the History Faculty Library of the University of Oxford, the History Faculty having moved to the Old Boys' School on George Street. The former offices now host the James Martin 21st Century School.