The Indian Registry of Pathology (IRP) was established in 1965 under the auspices of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in New Delhi, India as a Centre for collection and distribution of teaching material in pathology. The Registry was renamed in 1980 as the National Institute of Pathology (IOP) in view of its expanded scope and activities. As per the need of the post-independence era when a large number of new medical colleges were coming up, IRP took up the initiative with the original aims and objectives of collection, classification, duplication and distribution of a representative spectrum of histopathological teaching material to several medical colleges, institutions, individual pathologists and clinicians.