The National Test House [NTH], formerly known as Government Test House celebrated its 88th anniversary in the year 2000.  This is indeed an occasion for remembrance and reminiscence of the dedicated services rendered by this unique institution  to the nation. It is definitely a landmark in the path of progress over the last 89 years of its existence. Established way back  in 1912 in Calcutta by the then Railway Board to cater to the needs of the Indian Railways, the function of NTH was to check  the suitability of indigenously manufactured stores for use by the Indian Railway and also to stipulate the quality   requirements of Railways. In 1922 Indian Stores Department on the recommendation of the Industrial Commission absorbed  NTH for regular testing of the general stores required by the Defense Department till 1929. In 1934 the Industrial Intelligence   and Research Bureau later re-designated as Industrial Research Bureau was formed by the Government of India and was  housed and nurtured in NTH for conducting researches on problems directly connected with the indigenous development of  raw materials. This Bureau formed the nucleus to which present day CSIR owe its origin. The significant contributions of the  Research section of NTH in the field of applied research proved to be of national importance. In 1936-37, the NTH shouldered  a major responsibility in organizing a Road Test Track on behalf of the Department of Communication. All special machinery  such as Power Tractors were designed by the NTH and fabricated locally. This was a pioneering attempt in carrying out  Road Tests in the country.

Thus NTH traveled a long way and establish its importance in the panorama of the Indian industry. Since independence the  responsibilities devolving on the NTH have increased manifold. The Government of India felt the necessity of import  substitution and export promotion for building up a sound economy and fiscal base in the country. The NTH has actively  associated itself with the product development in both the industrial and agriculture sectors. It has been actively involved in  all aspects of technology connected with industry, commerce, trade, import substitution, export promotion and  standardization. It has assisted in the development of indigenous industries and served as a vital link between industrial research and manufacture of finished products by rigid quality control of both raw materials and finished products. The NTH  has been an active partner in standardization and formulation of National Standards and has the proud privilege of assisting  Indian Standards Institution presently known as Bureau of Indian Standards since its every inception in 1947. NTH also  rendered valuable assistance to the RDSO of Indian Railways in drawing up specifications for load test of Cast Steel Center   Buffer Couplers, new types of Screw Couplings and Draw Hooks, etc. in their initial stages of developments, undertaken a  number of investigation tests on a co-operative basis in collaboration with Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Indian   Institute of Petroleum, Dehra Doon, Central Road Research Institute, New Delhi, etc. in connection with development of  indigenous products, formulation of standards and fixation of quality level of products. The ground work for fabrication of the   Ganga Bridge, the Brahmaputra Bridge, the Heavy Engineering Corporation, the Heavy Electrical Project, etc was done in  NTH. Various typical welded joints in components of box bogie wagons, under frames of E. M. U. coaches for Indian  Railways, Cast Steel Bridge Bearing components of the National Highways, various types of air crafts in accordance with  Federal Aviation Administration Directives, various welded fabrications in Thermal Power Stations, Refineries, Chemical  Plants, etc. erected either by foreign firms or by public bodies in collaboration with foreign fabricators at various parts of the  country were assessed by NTH for ensuring safety. Manufacturers of welded Boiler Drums at the initial stage of production in  the country were amply assisted by NTH. The DRDO modified the techniques of fabrication of welded Aluminum Panels for  Prototype Bridge Class 2 on consultation with NTH. Research and Development work was done on Steel files methods of  evaluation of Lubricating Oils. Shocks Absorption Properly of Helmets being used for various purpose, selection of a retarded  for the Calcutta Metropolitan Railway Project, design and fabrication of a machine for performance evaluation of paint and  varnish brushes etc. In the decade of sixty India successfully launched its engineering goods in the export market. During this  period a need was felt to raise the level of quality assessment of those products to international standards by way of  modernizing the laboratories with the best available equipment's and by training scientists and technologists in the   contemporary trend in technology in the developed countries. Accordingly a number of Scientists of NTH were deputed to  foreign countries in USA, Germany, Italy, etc. under UNDP project for undergoing training on latest test methodology under   different technological areas. NTH is also actively involved in rendering assistance to NABL in accreditation of Testing and  Calibration Laboratories in the country.

To serve the long felt necessities of the Indian industry spread over this vast subcontinent, it was envisaged to open Regional  Test Houses in various parts of the country. The NTH has now six regional Laboratories located in the eastern, western,   southern, northern, north east and north west of the country. The chronological events leading to the development of NTH to  its present stature are enumerated below :