Central govt Holidays 2024: The year 2023 will end in one and a half months and after that the new year will come. As soon as the new year starts, a series of new holidays will also begin…
More than half of the month of November has passed. Meaning, only about one and a half months are left in this year. After that, the new year i.e. 2024 will start from the first of January. As soon as the new year starts, the new list of holidays for central employees will come into effect.
Two lists of holidays
In terms of holidays, the new year is also going to be great for the central government employees. The complete list of holidays for 2024 has been released by the Central Government. Two annexures have been given in the memorandum issued regarding holidays. Central government employees will not only get first annexure leaves, they will also get optional leaves from the second annexure list.
Second list of annexure
The holidays in the second list of the annexure are called restricted holidays. Central employees posted in Delhi or New Delhi can choose two holidays from the second list i.e. the list of alternative holidays. Whereas those employees, whose posting is outside Delhi or New Delhi, can select three holidays from the optional list.
Gazetted Holidays for Delhi/New Delhi employees:
| No. | Holiday | Date | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Republic Day | 26 January | Commemorates the day India became a republic in 1950. |
| 2 | Holi | 25 March | A festival of colors celebrated by Hindus. |
| 3 | Good Friday | 29 March | The day Jesus Christ was crucified. |
| 4 | Eid al-Fitr | 11 April | The end of the month-long fasting period of Ramadan. |
| 5 | Ram Navami | 17 April | Celebrates the birth of the Hindu god Rama. |
| 6 | Mahavir Jayanti | 21 April | Commemorates the birth of the Jain tirthankara Mahavira. |
| 7 | Buddha Purnima | 23 May | Celebrates the birth, enlightenment, and death of the Buddha. |
| 8 | Bakrid | 17 June | Celebrates the sacrifice of Ibrahim. |
| 9 | Muharram | 17 July | Commemorates the martyrdom of Hussein. |
| 10 | Independence Day | 15 August | Commemorates India’s independence from British rule in 1947. |
| 11 | Janmashtami | 26 August | Celebrates the birth of the Hindu god Krishna. |
| 12 | Eid-e-Milad | 16 September | Celebrates the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad. |
| 13 | Gandhi Jayanti | 2 October | Commemorates the birth of Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of the Indian independence movement. |
| 14 | Dussehra | 12 October | Celebrates the victory of good over evil. |
| 15 | Diwali | 31 October | A festival of lights celebrated by Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs. |
| 16 | Guru Nanak Jayanti | 15 November | Celebrates the birth of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism. |
| 17 | Christmas | 25 December | Celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. |
Gazetted holidays for employees posted outside Delhi/New Delhi
Republic Day, Independence Day, Gandhi Jayanti, Buddha Purnima, Christmas, Dussehra (Vijay Dashami), Diwali (Deepawali), Good Friday, Guru Nanak Jayanti, Eid-ul-Fitr, Eid-ul-Zuha, Mahavir Jayanti, Muharram, Prophet Mohammad’s Birthday (Eid-e-Milad).
Optional Holidays for employees posted in Delhi/New Delhi
| No. | Holiday | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Year | January 1 |
| 2 | Lohri | January 13 |
| 3 | Makar Sankranti | January 14 |
| 4 | Madha Bihu/Pongal | January 15 |
| 5 | Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti | January 17 |
| 6 | Hazrat Ali Jayanti | January 25 |
| 7 | Shri Panchami, Basant Panchami | February 14 |
| 8 | Shiva Ji Jayanti | February 19 |
| 9 | Guru Ravi Das Jayanti | February 24 |
| 10 | Swami Dayanand Saraswati Jayanti | March 6 |
| 11 | Mahashivratri | March 8 |
| 12 | Holika Dahan | March 24 |
| 13 | Dalayatra | March 25 |
| 14 | Easter Sunday | March 31 |
| 15 | Jamaat-ul-Vida | April 5 |
| 16 | Chaitra Shukladi / Gudi Padwa / Ugadi / Chaiti Chand | April 9 |
| 17 | Vaishakhi / Vishu | April 13 |
| 18 | Meshadi (Tamil New Year Day) / Vaisakhadi (Bengal) / Bahag Bihu (Assam) | April 14 |
| 19 | Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti | May 8 |
| 20 | Rath Yatra | July 7 |
| 21 | Parsi New Year / Nowruz | August 15 |
| 22 | Raksha Bandhan | August 19 |
| 23 | Ganesh Chaturthi | September 7 |
| 24 | Onam | September 15 |
| 25 | Dussehra (Saptami) | October 10 |
| 26 | Dussehra (Mahashtami) / Dussehra (Mahanavami) | October 11 |
| 27 | Maharishi Valmiki Jayanti | October 17 |
| 28 | Karak Chaturthi (Karva Chauth) | October 20 |
| 29 | Narak Chaturdashi | October 31 |
| 30 | Govardhan Puja | November 2 |
| 31 | Bhai Dooj | November 3 |
| 32 | Pratihar Shashthi or Surya Shashthi or Surya Shashthi (Chhath Puja) | November 7 |
| 33 | Guru Teg Bahadur Martyrdom Day | November 24 |
| 34 | Christmas Eve | December 24 |
Optional Holidays for employees posted outside Delhi/New Delhi
One extra day for Dussehra, Holi, Janmashtami (Vaishnavi), Ram Navami, Maha Shivratri, Ganesh Chaturthi/Vinayak Chaturthi, Makar Sankranti, Rath Yatra, Onam, Pongal, Shri Panchami/Basant Panchami, Vishu/Vaisakhi/Vaisakhadi/Bhag Bihu/ Mashadi Ugadi/Chaitra Shukladi/Cheti Chand/Gudi Padwa/First Navratri/Nauraj/Chhath Puja/Karva Chauth.
