Central Government Holidays 2026
Every central government office in India closes on the compulsory holidays below. Offices outside Delhi add three more holidays chosen by the welfare coordination committee of their state capital, and every employee can take two restricted holidays of their choice.
Compulsory holidays 2026
| Date | Day | Holiday | Type | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Jan 2026 | Monday |
 Republic Day |
Holiday | |
| 21 Mar 2026 | Saturday | Eid-ul-Fitr Id-ul-Fitr moon sighting | Holiday | |
| 31 Mar 2026 | Tuesday |
 Mahavir Jayanti |
Holiday | |
| 3 Apr 2026 | Friday |
 Good Friday |
Holiday | |
| 1 May 2026 | Friday |
 Buddha Purnima Budha Purnima |
Holiday | |
| 27 May 2026 | Wednesday | Eid-ul-Adha (Bakrid) Id-ul-Zuha (Bakrid) moon sighting | Holiday | |
| 26 Jun 2026 | Friday | Muharram (Ashura) Muharram moon sighting | Holiday | |
| 15 Aug 2026 | Saturday |
 Independence Day |
Holiday | |
| 26 Aug 2026 | Wednesday | Milad-un-Nabi (Eid-e-Milad) Milad-un-Nabi or Id-e-Milad (Birthday of Prophet Mohammad) moon sighting | Holiday | |
| 2 Oct 2026 | Friday |
 Gandhi Jayanti Mahatma Gandhi's Birthday |
Holiday | |
| 20 Oct 2026 | Tuesday |
 Dussehra |
Holiday | |
| 8 Nov 2026 | Sunday |
 Diwali Diwali (Deepavali) |
Holiday | |
| 24 Nov 2026 | Tuesday |
 Guru Nanak Jayanti Guru Nanak's Birthday |
Holiday | |
| 25 Dec 2026 | Friday |
 Christmas Christmas Day |
Holiday |
Optional holidays 2026 (three chosen in each state)
Each state capital committee picks three of these for central government offices in that state.
| Date | Day | Holiday | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Jan 2026 | Wednesday |
 Makar Sankranti MAKAR SANKARANTI |
Optional holiday |
| 14 Jan 2026 | Wednesday |
 Pongal |
Optional holiday |
| 23 Jan 2026 | Friday |
 Basant Panchami SRI PANCHAMI/ BASANT PANCHAMI |
Optional holiday |
| 15 Feb 2026 | Sunday |
 Maha Shivratri |
Optional holiday |
| 4 Mar 2026 | Wednesday |
 Holi |
Optional holiday |
| 26 Mar 2026 | Thursday |
 Ram Navami |
Optional holiday |
| 16 Jul 2026 | Thursday |
 Rath Yatra |
Optional holiday |
| 26 Aug 2026 | Wednesday |
 Onam |
Optional holiday |
| 4 Sep 2026 | Friday |
 Janmashtami JANAMASHTAMI (VAISHNAVI) |
Optional holiday |
| 14 Sep 2026 | Monday |
 Ganesh Chaturthi GANESH CHATURTHI / VINAYAK CHATURTHI |
Optional holiday |
| Date not fixed |
Dussehra AN ADDITIONAL DAY FOR DUSSEHRA |
Optional holiday | |
| Date not fixed |
 Vaisakhi /  Chaitra Sukladi (Hindu New Year) /  Ugadi /  Cheti Chand /  Vishu /  Bohag Bihu /  Pohela Boishakh (Bengali New Year) /  Karva Chauth /  Chhath Puja VISHU/ VAISAKHI / VAISAKHADI / BHAG BIHU / MASHADI UGADI / CHAITRA SUKLADI / CHETI CHAND / GUDI PADAVA /1ST NAVRATRA / NAORAZ/CHHATH POOJA/KARVA CHAUTH. |
Optional holiday |
See the three chosen for: Uttarakhand Uttar Pradesh Delhi Bihar Assam West Bengal Maharashtra Karnataka Tamil Nadu Kerala Gujarat Rajasthan Madhya Pradesh Telangana Andhra Pradesh Odisha Punjab Haryana Jharkhand Himachal Pradesh Chhattisgarh Goa Jammu and Kashmir
Restricted holidays 2026
An employee can take any two of these in the year.
| Date | Day | Holiday | Type | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan 2026 | Thursday |
 New Year's Day |
Restricted holiday | |
| 3 Jan 2026 | Saturday | Hazrat Ali's Birthday Hazarat Ali's Birthday | Restricted holiday | |
| 14 Jan 2026 | Wednesday |
Makar Sankranti |
Restricted holiday | |
| 14 Jan 2026 | Wednesday |
 Magh Bihu / Pongal Magha Bihu / Pongal |
Restricted holiday | |
| 23 Jan 2026 | Friday |
Basant Panchami Sri Panchami, Basant Panchami |
Restricted holiday | |
| 1 Feb 2026 | Sunday |
 Guru Ravidas Jayanti Guru Ravi Das's Birthday |
Restricted holiday | |
| 12 Feb 2026 | Thursday |
 Swami Dayanand Saraswati Jayanti Birthday of Swami Dayananda Saraswati |
Restricted holiday | |
| 15 Feb 2026 | Sunday |
Maha Shivratri |
Restricted holiday | |
| 19 Feb 2026 | Thursday |
 Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti Shiva ji Jayanti |
Restricted holiday | |
| 3 Mar 2026 | Tuesday |
 Holika Dahan |
Restricted holiday | |
| 3 Mar 2026 | Tuesday |
 Dol Jatra Dolyatra |
Restricted holiday | |
| 19 Mar 2026 | Thursday |
Chaitra Sukladi (Hindu New Year) /  Gudi Padwa / Ugadi / Cheti Chand Chaitra Sukladi/ Gudi Padava/ Ugadi/ Cheti Chand |
Restricted holiday | |
| 20 Mar 2026 | Friday | Jamat-ul-Vida | Restricted holiday | |
| 5 Apr 2026 | Sunday |
 Easter Sunday |
Restricted holiday | |
| 14 Apr 2026 | Tuesday |
Vaisakhi / Vishu /  Tamil New Year (Puthandu) Vaisakhi/ Vishu/ Meshadi (Tamil New Year's Day) |
Restricted holiday | |
| 15 Apr 2026 | Wednesday |
Pohela Boishakh (Bengali New Year) / Bohag Bihu Vaisakhadi (Bengal) / Bahag Bihu (Assam) |
Restricted holiday | |
| 9 May 2026 | Saturday |
 Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti Birthday of Guru Rabindranath Tagore |
Restricted holiday | |
| 16 Jul 2026 | Thursday |
Rath Yatra |
Restricted holiday | |
| 15 Aug 2026 | Saturday |
 Parsi New Year (Navroz) Parsi New Year's day / Nauraj |
Restricted holiday | |
| 26 Aug 2026 | Wednesday |
Onam Onam or Thiru Onam Day |
Restricted holiday | |
| 28 Aug 2026 | Friday |
 Raksha Bandhan |
Restricted holiday | |
| 14 Sep 2026 | Monday |
Ganesh Chaturthi Ganesh Chaturthi / Vinayak Chaturthi |
Restricted holiday | |
| 18 Oct 2026 | Sunday |
 Durga Puja (Maha Saptami) Dusshera (Saptami) |
Restricted holiday | |
| 19 Oct 2026 | Monday |
 Durga Ashtami (Maha Ashtami) Dussehra (Mahashtami) |
Restricted holiday | |
| 20 Oct 2026 | Tuesday |
 Maha Navami Dussehra (Mahanavmi) |
Restricted holiday | |
| 26 Oct 2026 | Monday |
 Maharishi Valmiki Jayanti Maharishi Valmiki's Birthday |
Restricted holiday | |
| 29 Oct 2026 | Thursday |
Karva Chauth Karaka Chaturthi (Karwa Chouth) |
Restricted holiday | |
| 8 Nov 2026 | Sunday |
 Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali) Naraka Chaturdasi |
Restricted holiday | |
| 9 Nov 2026 | Monday |
 Govardhan Puja |
Restricted holiday | |
| 11 Nov 2026 | Wednesday |
 Bhai Dooj Bhai Duj |
Restricted holiday | |
| 15 Nov 2026 | Sunday |
Chhath Puja Pratihar Shashthi or Surya Shashthi (Chhat Puja) |
Restricted holiday | |
| 24 Nov 2026 | Tuesday |
 Guru Tegh Bahadur Martyrdom Day Guru Teg Bahadur's Martyrdom Day |
Restricted holiday | |
| 23 Dec 2026 | Wednesday | Hazrat Ali's Birthday Hazarat Ali's Birthday | Restricted holiday | |
| 24 Dec 2026 | Thursday |
 Christmas Eve |
Restricted holiday |
Central Government Holidays 2027
The 2027 compulsory holidays have been notified.
| Date | Day | Holiday | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Jan 2027 | Tuesday |
Republic Day |
Holiday |
| 10 Mar 2027 | Wednesday | Eid-ul-Fitr Id-ul-Fitr moon sighting | Holiday |
| 26 Mar 2027 | Friday |
Good Friday |
Holiday |
| 19 Apr 2027 | Monday |
Mahavir Jayanti |
Holiday |
| 17 May 2027 | Monday | Eid-ul-Adha (Bakrid) Id-ul-Zuha (Bakrid) moon sighting | Holiday |
| 20 May 2027 | Thursday |
Buddha Purnima Budha Purnima |
Holiday |
| 16 Jun 2027 | Wednesday | Muharram (Ashura) Muharram moon sighting | Holiday |
| 15 Aug 2027 | Sunday |
Independence Day |
Holiday |
| 15 Aug 2027 | Sunday | Milad-un-Nabi (Eid-e-Milad) Milad-un-Nabi or Id-e-Milad (Prophet Mohammad's Birthday) moon sighting | Holiday |
| 2 Oct 2027 | Saturday |
Gandhi Jayanti Mahatma Gandhi's Birthday |
Holiday |
| 9 Oct 2027 | Saturday |
Dussehra Dussehra (Vijaya Dashmi) |
Holiday |
| 29 Oct 2027 | Friday |
Diwali Diwali (Deepavali) |
Holiday |
| 14 Nov 2027 | Sunday |
Guru Nanak Jayanti Guru Nanak's Birthday |
Holiday |
| 25 Dec 2027 | Saturday |
Christmas Christmas Day |
Holiday |
Holidays and festivals calendar: October and November 2026
Central government holidays for all of India and major festivals. For bank, state government and school holidays, open your state: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2
Friday, 2 October Gandhi Jayanti Gandhi Jayanti on 2 October marks the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India's freedom struggle and the voice of truth and non-violence. |
3 | 4 | |||
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11
Sunday, 11 October Sharad Navratri Sharad Navratri is the nine night autumn festival of the Goddess Durga, beginning with Ghatasthapana and leading up to Dussehra, with fasting, prayer, garba... |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17
Saturday, 17 October Durga Puja Durga Puja celebrates Goddess Durga's victory over the demon Mahishasura with grand pandals, dhak drums, prayers and feasts, especially in West Bengal and ea... |
18 |
| 19 | 20
Tuesday, 20 October Dussehra Dussehra, or Vijayadashami, celebrates the victory of good over evil, recalling Lord Rama's defeat of Ravana and Goddess Durga's triumph over Mahishasura. |
21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
Sunday, 8 November Diwali Diwali, the festival of lights, celebrates the victory of light over darkness with Lakshmi Puja, rows of diyas, sweets and family gatherings on the new moon... |
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15
Sunday, 15 November Chhath Puja Chhath Puja is a four day festival of Bihar and eastern India in which devotees fast and offer arghya to the setting and rising Sun while standing in water. |
| 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 23 | 24
Tuesday, 24 November Guru Nanak Jayanti Guru Nanak Jayanti, or Prakash Purab, celebrates the birth of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of Sikhism, with prayers, nagar kirtans, langar and lit up gurdw... |
25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 30 |
Public holiday Major festival Today
- Sat, 17 Oct
Durga Puja - Tue, 20 Oct
Dussehra
- Sun, 8 Nov
Diwali
- Sun, 15 Nov
Chhath Puja
- Tue, 24 Nov
Guru Nanak Jayanti