Central Government Holidays in Karnataka 2026
Central government offices in Karnataka close on 14 gazetted holidays in 2026. The three optional holidays for the state have not been announced yet. Employees can also take two restricted holidays.
- 14gazetted holidays in 2026
- 3fall on a weekly off day
- 6long weekends
- Marchbusiest month (2)
Gazetted (closed) 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 |
Restricted holidays 2026
Each central government employee can take any two of these restricted holidays 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 |
How the optional holidays are chosen
The central government fixes the compulsory holidays for all its offices. Outside Delhi, the welfare coordination committee in each state capital then picks three more from a list of twelve. The twelve options for 2026 are listed below; the ones chosen for Karnataka are marked.
- Makar Sankranti (14 Jan 2026)
- Pongal (14 Jan 2026)
- Basant Panchami (23 Jan 2026)
- Maha Shivratri (15 Feb 2026)
- Holi (4 Mar 2026)
- Ram Navami (26 Mar 2026)
- Rath Yatra (16 Jul 2026)
- Onam (26 Aug 2026)
- Janmashtami (4 Sep 2026)
- Ganesh Chaturthi (14 Sep 2026)
- Dussehra
- Vaisakhi / Chaitra Sukladi (Hindu New Year) / Ugadi / Cheti Chand / Vishu / Bohag Bihu / Pohela Boishakh (Bengali New Year) / Karva Chauth / Chhath Puja
Long weekends
- 24 to 26 January 2026 (3 days off: Saturday to Monday) for Republic Day
- 3 to 5 April 2026 (3 days off: Friday to Sunday) for Good Friday
- 1 to 3 May 2026 (3 days off: Friday to Sunday) for Buddha Purnima
- 26 to 28 June 2026 (3 days off: Friday to Sunday) for Muharram (Ashura)
- 2 to 4 October 2026 (3 days off: Friday to Sunday) for Gandhi Jayanti
- 25 to 27 December 2026 (3 days off: Friday to Sunday) for Christmas
Central Government Holidays in Karnataka 2027
The 2027 list has been published. It becomes the main list on this page on 1 January 2027.
Gazetted (closed) holidays 2027
| 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 |
Other Karnataka holiday lists
Holidays and festivals calendar: October and November 2026
Public holidays in Karnataka (bank, central government, state government and school lists) and major festivals across India. Restricted and minor days are left out.
| 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
Saturday, 10 October Mahalaya Amavasya Mahalaya Amavasya is the last day of Pitru Paksha, when Hindus offer tarpan and shraddha to their ancestors, and in Bengal it marks the start of Devi Paksha... |
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 / Maha Navami 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
Wednesday, 21 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. |
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
Tuesday, 10 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... |
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
Friday, 27 November Kanakadasa Jayanthi |
28 | 29 |
| 30 |
Public holiday Major festival Today
- Sat, 17 Oct
Durga Puja - Tue, 20 Oct
Dussehra / Maha Navami
- Wed, 21 Oct
Dussehra
- Sun, 8 Nov
Diwali
- Tue, 10 Nov
Diwali
- Sun, 15 Nov
Chhath Puja
- Tue, 24 Nov
Guru Nanak Jayanti
- Fri, 27 Nov Kanakadasa Jayanthi