The Institute was formally established under the UNDP's Special Fund Project as the Institute of Tropical Meteorology (ITM) at Pune on November 17, 1962 as a distinct part of the India Meteorological Department (IMD). On April 1, 1971, the Government of India gave it an autonomous status with a new name as the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM). The IITM functions as a national centre for basic and applied research in monsoon meteorology of the tropics in general with special reference to monsoon meteorology of India and neighbourhood. Its primary functions are to promote, guide and conduct research in the field of meteorology in all its aspects.