The Institute of Hotel Management (IHM) is the common name used for a network of government-run institutes in India that offer education and training in hospitality management, catering technology, and applied nutrition. These institutes are affiliated with the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India.
| Type | Government institutes of hospitality education |
|---|---|
| Affiliation | National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT) |
| Parent ministry | Ministry of Tourism, Government of India |
| Academic partner | NCHMCT in collaboration with the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) for the B.Sc. in Hospitality and Hotel Administration |
| Country | India |
| Common admission test | NCHM JEE (conducted by the National Testing Agency) |
The IHMs were established to provide structured, professional education in hotel management and allied disciplines, with the aim of supporting India's tourism and hospitality sector. The institutes operate at three tiers — Central IHMs funded by the Government of India, State IHMs supported by respective state governments, and a number of private institutes affiliated to NCHMCT. Each institute follows a standardised curriculum prescribed by the council.
Formal hospitality training in India began in the 1960s with the setting up of food craft institutes and the original Institute of Hotel Management, Catering and Nutrition at Pusa, New Delhi. As the tourism industry expanded, the network was extended across the country and brought under the umbrella of the NCHMCT, which was set up in 1982 to coordinate, regulate, and standardise hospitality education.
The IHMs typically offer the following programmes through NCHMCT:
Admission to the flagship B.Sc. programme is through the NCHM JEE, a national-level entrance examination conducted by the National Testing Agency. Candidates are allotted seats across participating central, state, and private IHMs through a centralised counselling process.
Prominent institutes within the network include:
Additional state-run and affiliated institutes operate in cities such as Jaipur, Gurdaspur, Gwalior, Bhubaneswar, Shimla, Srinagar, Guwahati, and Thiruvananthapuram.
The IHM network is among the largest organised systems of hospitality education in Asia and is regarded as a principal source of trained human resources for India's hotels, airlines, cruise lines, contract catering firms, and quick-service restaurant chains. Alumni occupy positions across the Indian and international hospitality industry, and several have moved into entrepreneurship, food media, and culinary arts.