The first ascent of Mt Everest in 1953 by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay generated interest in mountaineering in India which led to the establishment of Indian mountaineering Foundation. IMF was formed in 1957 as the Sponsoring Committee of the Cho Oyu Expedition. The foundation was registered on 3 November 1961 and the new building was inaugurated by Indira Gandhi in 1980, then Prime Minister of India.