Public holidays in India

• 1. Introduction

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  Public holidays in India rest partly on an 1881 law, the Negotiable Instruments Act. Section 25 of that act still lets state and union territory governments declare additional local holidays today. Layered on top of it sits a surprisingly short list of holidays that the Union Government requires everywhere, regardless of state. Everything else is either declared centrally or left to individual states. That includes Hindu and Sikh festivals, Muslim observances tied to the Islamic calendar, and Christian feast days. How many days does Delhi actually require, and which ones made that short list?

• 2. Three Mandatory Holidays

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  Republic Day falls on the 26th of January and marks the day the Constitution of India took effect, in 1950. Independence Day follows on the 15th of August, marking India's 1947 independence from British rule. Gandhi Jayanti lands on the 2nd of October, the same date Mahatma Gandhi was born, in 1869. These are the only three holidays the Union Government legislates as mandatory for every state and union territory in the country.

  Central government offices follow a much longer holiday roster than these three, split between dates fixed every year and dates offices may choose optionally.

• 3. Fixed Central Holidays

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  Christmas Day falls on the 25th of December and marks the birth of Jesus Christ, whose life is dated to roughly 6 to 4 BC through 30 or 33 AD.

  Mawlid falls on the 12th of Rabi' al-awwal, the third month of the Islamic calendar, and marks the birth of the Prophet Muhammad. Eid al-Fitr follows on the first day of Shawwal, celebrating the breaking of the fast. Ashura arrives on the 10th of Muharram, when Muslims mourn the martyrdom of Husayn Ibn Ali, a member of Muhammad's family. The same date also marks Moses parting the Red Sea, the salvation of the Israelites, and Noah's disembarkment from the Ark. Eid al-Adha, observed on the 10th of Dhu al-Hijjah, honors Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son in obedience to God. The tradition names the son as either Isaac or Ismail.

  Mahavir Janma Kalyanak, on a floating date, marks the birth of Mahavira in 599 BC. He was the twenty-fourth and final Tirthankara of the present Avasarpini era in Jainism. Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus. Buddha's Birthday falls on the full moon day of the Vaisakha month. It celebrates Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, who lived roughly from 563 to 483 BC.

  Vijayadashami falls on the tenth day of Ashvin, the seventh month of the Hindu calendar, marking the victory of good over evil. Sikhs observe the same day as Dasehara. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, falls on the new moon day of Ashvin or Kartika. Sikhs mark the same date as Bandi Chhor Divas, recalling Guru Hargobind's release from imprisonment at Gwalior Fort by the Mughal emperor Jahangir. That same day, he arrived at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Guru Nanak's Birthday closes the fixed list, honoring the first Sikh guru, who was born in 1469.

  Central government offices then draw from a separate optional list, letting each office pick a select number of extra days to suit local convenience.

• 4. Optional Central Holidays

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  Makar Sankranti, also known as Pongal, marks the sun's shift from Sagittarius to Capricorn and honors the solar deity Surya. Vasant Panchami honors the goddess Saraswati and falls on the fifth day of Magha, the eleventh month of the Hindu calendar, marking preparations for spring. Maha Shivaratri celebrates the wedding of Lord Shiva and Parvati, observed on the fourteenth day of Krishna Paksha in Phalguna or Magha. Nowruz marks the start of the Persian New Year.

  Holi, the Hindu festival of colors, falls on the full moon day of Phalguna. It marks the death of the demoness Holika, aunt of the devotee Prahlad, and the arrival of spring. Sikh texts call the same day Hola. Guru Gobind Singh extended it into a three-day festival called Hola Mohalla, held the day after Holi in Anandpur Sahib. There, Sikh soldiers trained in battle and competed in horsemanship, athletics, archery, and military exercises.

  Rama Navami celebrates the birth of Lord Rama on the ninth day of Shukla Paksha in the month of Chaitra. Several optional holidays mark distinct new year traditions across India. Ugadi opens the Telugu and Kannada year, and Cheti Chand marks the Sindhi new year. Puthandu begins the Tamil calendar on the first day of the month of Chithirai, also marking the harvest for Tamil Nadu's farming communities. Vishu opens the Malayali new year. Vaisakhi marks the Solar new year in North India and the spring harvest, falling on the first day of Vaisakh in the Punjabi calendar. Bohag Bihu begins the Assamese year, and Gudi Padwa begins the Marathi and Konkani year.

  Ratha Yatra is a public procession of chariots carrying the deities Jagannath, Balarama, and Subhadra, held in the month of Ashadha. Krishna Janmashtami celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna on the eighth day of Krishna Paksha in the month of Shravana. Ganesh Chaturthi honors Lord Ganesha on the fourth day of Krishna Paksha in the month of Bhadrapada. Onam is a Kerala harvest festival commemorating a visit from Mahabali, celebrated during the month of Chingam. Navaratri marks the first day of the Hindu Vikram Samvat calendar. Chhath is a harvest festival dedicated to the sun god Surya, observed in North and East India on the sixth day of Kartika. Karva Chauth is observed by women praying for their husbands' longevity, marked four days after the full moon in Kartika.

  State governments layer a further set of holidays on top of these, covering everything from harvest days to the birthdays of regional leaders.

• 5. State and Regional Holidays

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  Bhogi is a fixed harvest holiday shared by Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana. Lohri, on a floating date, is Punjab's harvest holiday. Assam observes Magh Bihu on a fixed date and also lists Kati Bihu among its harvest holidays. Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, and Punjab share a harvest holiday called Maghi. Mizoram marks Chapchar Kut, while Assam, Meghalaya, and Nagaland share the floating festival Wangala.

  Individual states also mark their own founding or liberation with named days. Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Bihar each have a formation day: Andhra Pradesh Day, Arunachal Pradesh Statehood Day, Asom Day, and Bihar Day. Chhattisgarh calls its version Chhattisgarh Rajyotsava, and Karnataka calls its Kannada Rajyothsava. Goa observes a Liberation Day, and Karnataka separately marks a Hyderabad-Karnataka Liberation Day. Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, and West Bengal each mark a day named simply for the state. These are Gujarat Day, Haryana Day, Himachal Day, Kerala Day, Maharashtra Day, Odisha Day, and West Bengal Day. Jammu and Kashmir marks an Accession Day. Mizoram and Sikkim each have a State Day, Nagaland has a State Inauguration Day, and Telangana has a Formation Day. Puducherry observes two separate dates, a De Jure Transfer Day and a Liberation Day.

  Several states also declare holidays for individual leaders and reformers. Maharashtra observes Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti, and Gujarat marks Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's Birthday. West Bengal holds two separate literary and philosophical birthdays: Rabindranath Tagore's Birthday and Swami Vivekananda's Birthday. Tamil Nadu observes Thiruvalluvar Day, Rajasthan marks Maharana Pratap Jayanti, and Karnataka observes Basava Jayanti. Chandigarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab together mark Guru Ravidass Jayanti, and Odisha, Tripura, and West Bengal together mark Netaji's Birthday. Ambedkar Jayanti is listed as observed across India and the rest of the world.

  Beyond named festivals and leaders, two more institutions run their own separate holiday calendars entirely: the banking system and the education system.

• 6. Banks and School Calendars

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  Every second and fourth Saturday of the month, banks close under state-specific holiday lists. The 1st of April is a distinct national bank holiday each year, set aside for annual account closing. It falls on the first day of the financial year. Schools, colleges, and other educational institutions run on their own separate term holidays, set by each state or board. For banks, that cycle resets every the 1st of April, when the ledgers close and a new financial year, and a new list of holidays, begins.