Holidays to be observed in Central Government Offices during the year 2016

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This official memorandum from the Government of India details the holidays to be observed in Central Government Offices during the year 2016. It specifies 14 compulsory holidays applicable to all offices, and outlines a process for selecting three additional restricted holidays. The document differentiates between holidays for offices located in Delhi/New Delhi versus those outside, and provides guidance on adjusting dates for lunar-based festivals. It also includes lists of both compulsory and restricted holidays, specifying dates according to both the Gregorian and Saka calendars. The memorandum also addresses procedures for announcing changes to holiday dates and clarifies holiday regulations for Indian Missions abroad and Banks.

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F.No.12/7/2015-JCA-2
Government of India
Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
(Department of Personnel and Training)
North Block, New Delhi
Dated the $11^{\text {th }}$ June, 2015

Subject: Holidays to be observed in Central Government Offices during the year 2016- reg.

It has been decided that the holidays as specified in the Annexure -I to this O.M. will be observed in all the Administrative Offices of the Central Government located at Delhi/New Delhi during the year 2016. In addition, each employee will also be allowed to avail himself/herself of any two holidays to be chosen by him/her out of the list of Restricted Holidays in Annexure – II.
2. Central Government Administrative Offices located outside Delhi / New Delhi shall observe the following holidays compulsorily in addition to three holidays as per para 3.1 below:

  1. REPUBLIC DAY
  2. INDEPENDENCE DAY
  3. MAHATMA GANDHI’S BIRTHDAY
  4. BUDDHA PURNIMA
  5. CHRISTMAS DAY
  6. DUSSEHRA (VIJAY DASHMI)
  7. DIWALI (DEEPAVALI)
  8. GOOD FRIDAY
  9. GURU NANAK’S BIRTHDAY
  10. IDU’L FITR
  11. IDU’L ZUHA
  12. MAHAVIR JAYANTI
  13. MUHARRAM
  14. PROPHET MOHAMMAD’S BIRTHDAY (ID-E-MILAD)
    3.1. In addition to the above 14 Compulsory holidays mentioned in para 2, three holidays shall be decided from the list indicated below by the Central Government Employees Welfare Coordination Committee in the State Capitals, if necessary, in consultation with Coordination Committees at other places in the State. The final list applicable uniformly to all Central Government offices within the concerned State shall be notified accordingly and no change can be carried out thereafter. It is also clarified that no change is permissible in regard to festivals and dates as indicated.
  15. AN ADDITIONAL DAY FOR DUSSEHRA
  16. HOLI
  17. JANAMASHTAMI (VAISHNAVI)
  18. RAM NAVAMI
  19. MAHA SHIVRATRI
  20. GANESH CHATURTHI / VINAYAK CHATURTHI
  21. MAKAR SANKARANTI
  22. RATH YATRA
  23. ONAM
  24. PONGAL
  25. SRI PANCHAMI / BASANT PANCHAMI
  26. VISHU/ VAISAKHI / VAISAKHADI / BHAG BIHU / MASHADI UGADI / CHAITRA SUKLADI / CHETI CHAND / GUDI PADAVA 1ST NAVRATRA / NAURAJ/CHHATH POOJA/KARVA CHAUTH.

3.2 No substitute holiday should be allowed if any of the festival holidays initially declared subsequently happens to fall on a weekly off or any other non-working day or in the event of more than one festivals falling on the same day.
4. The list of Restricted Holidays appended to this O.M. is meant for Central Government Offices located in Delhi / New Delhi. The Coordination Committees at the State Capitals may draw up separate list of Restricted Holidays keeping in view the occasions of local importance but the 9 occasions left over, after choosing the 3 variable holidays in para 3.1 above, are to be included in the list of restricted holidays.
5.1 For offices in Delhi / New Delhi, any change in the date of holidays in respect of Idu’l Fitr, Idu’l Zuha, Muharram and Id-e-Milad, if necessary, depending upon sighting of the Moon, would be declared by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions after ascertaining the position from the Govt. of NCT of Delhi (DCP, Special Branch, Delhi Police).
5.2 For offices outside Delhi / New Delhi, the Central Government Employees Welfare Coordination Committees at the State Capitals are authorised to change the date of holiday, if necessary, based on the decision of the concerned State Governments / Union Territories, in respect of Idu’l Fitr, Idu’l Zuha, Muharram and Id-e-Milad.
5.3 It may happen that the change of date of the above occasions has to be declared at a very short notice. In such a situation, announcement could be made through P.I.B/T.V./A.I.R./ Newspapers and the Heads of Department / Offices of the Central Government may take action according to such an announcement without waiting for a formal order, about the change of date.
6. During 2016, Diwali (Deepavali) falls on Sunday, October 30, 2016 (Kartika 08). In certain States, the practice is to celebrate the occasion a day in advance, i.e., on “Narakachaturdasi Day”. In view of this, there is no objection if holiday on account of Deepavali is observed on “Naraka Chaturdasi Day (in place of Deepavali Day) for the Central Government Offices in a State if in that State that day alone is declared as a compulsory holiday for Diwali for the offices of the State Government.
7. Central Government Organisations which include industrial, commercial and trading establishments would observe upto 16 holidays in a year including three national holidays viz. Republic Day, Independence Day and Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday, as compulsory holidays. The remaining holidays / occasions may be determined by such establishments / organisations themselves for the year 2016, subject to para 3.2 above.
8. Union Territory Administrations shall decide the list of holidays in terms of Instructions issued in this regard by the Ministry of Home Affairs.


  1. In respect of Indian Missions abroad, the number of holidays may be notified in accordance with the instructions contained in this Department’s O.M. No.12/5/2002-JCA dated $17^{\text {th }}$ December, 2002. In other words, they will have the option to select 10 (Ten)) holidays of their own only after including in the list, three National Holidays and Budh Purnima, Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday, Diwali and Christmas included in the list of compulsory holidays and falling on day of weekly off.
  2. In respect of Banks, the holidays shall be regulated in terms of the extant instructions issued by the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance.
  3. Hindi version will follow.
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Encl.: Lists of holidays

To

  1. All Ministries/ Departments of Government of India.
  2. UPSC/CVC/C&AG/ PMO / Lok Sabha Secretariat/ Rajya Sabha Secretariat/ President’s Secretariat/Vice-President’s Secretariat/ Supreme Court/ High Court/ Central Administrative Tribunal/ Election Commission of India / Minorities Commission/ National Human Rights Commission/Central Information Commission/National Commission for Women.
  3. All attached and subordinate offices of Ministry of Personnel, P.G. \& Pensions.
  4. Secretary, Staff Side, National Council (JCM), 13-C, Ferozeshah Road, New Delhi.
  5. All Staff Side Members of the National Council (JCM).
  6. All Staff Side Members of the Departmental Council (JCM), Ministry of Personnel, P.G. and Pensions.
  7. Chairman / Secretaries, Central Government Employees Welfare Coordination Committees (As per updated list from Welfare Section).
  8. Commissioner for Scheduled Castes /Commissioner for Scheduled Tribes.
  9. PS to Cabinet Secretary.
  10. Deputy Secretary (Coordination), Delhi Govt. Secretariat, I.G. Stadium, I.T.O., New Delhi.
  11. The Manager (Store), Government of India, Forms Store, 166, Lenin Sarai, Kolkata (with 10 spare copies).
  12. Chief Secretaries to all the State Governments / Union Territoreis.
  13. Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity, PTI Building, New Delhi (with 5 spare copies)
  14. Deputy Director (Bills), Dte. Of Printing, B-Wing, Nirman Bhavan, New Delhi (with 5 spare copies)
  15. Positional Astronomy Centre, Block-AQ, Plot No. 8 Sector-V, Salt lake, Manish Bathan, Kolkata – 700091
  16. Facilitation Center, DOP\&T (20 copies)
  17. NIC (DOPT) with the request to place this O.M. on the Website of the Department (www.persmin.nic.in)
  18. 100 Spare Copies.

LIIST OF HOLIDAYS DURING THE YEAR 2016 FOR ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES OF CENTRAL GOVERNMENT LOCATED AT DELHI / NEW DELHI

S.No. Holiday Date Saka Date Day
2016 A.D. 1937 SAKA ERA
1. Republic Day January 26 Magha 06 Tuesday
1938 SAKA ERA
2. Holi March 24 Chaitra 04 Thursday
3. Good Friday March 25 Chaitra 05 Friday
4. Ram Navami April 15 Chaitra 26 Friday
5. Mahavir Jayanti April 20 Chaitra 31 Wednesday
6. Buddha Purnima May 21 Vaisakha 31 Saturday
7. Idu’l Fitr July 06 Ashadha 15 Wednesday
8. Independence day August 15 Sravana 24 Monday
9. Janmashtami August 25 Bhadra 03 Thursday
10. Id-ul-Zuha(Bakrid) September 12 Bhadra 21 Monday
11. Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday October 02 Asvina 10 Sunday
12. Dussehra October 11 Asvina 19 Tuesday
13. Muharram October 12 Ashvina 20 Wednesday
14. Diwali (Deepavali) October 30 Kartika 08 Sunday
15. Guru Nanak’s Birthday November 14 Kartika 23 Monday
16. Milad-Un-Nabi or Id-EMilad (Birthday of Prophet Mohammad) December 13 Agrahayana 22 Tuesday
17. Christmas Day December 25 Pausha 04 Sunday

ANNEXURE-II

LIST OF RESTRICTED HOLIDAYS DURING THE YEAR 2016 FOR ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES OF CENTRAL GOVERNMENT LOCATED AT DELHI / NEW DELHI

S.No Holiday Date Saka Date Day
SAKA ERA 1937
1. New Year’s Day January 01 Pausha 11 Friday
2. Makar Sankranti January 14 Pausha 24 Thursday
3. Pongal January 15 Pausha 25 Friday
4. Guru Govind Singh’s Birthday January 16 Pausha 26 Saturday
5. Basant Panchami
/Sri Panchami
February 12 Magha 23 Friday
6. Shivaji Jayanti February 19 Magha 30 Friday
7. Guru Ravidas’s Birthday February 22 Phalguna 03 Monday
8. Swami Dayananda Saraswati Jayanti March 04 Phalguna 14 Friday
9. Maha Shivaratri March 07 Phalguna 17 Monday
SAKA ERA 1938
10. Holika Dahan, Dolyatra March 23 Chaitra 03 Wednesday
11. Easter Sunday March 27 Chaitra 07 Sunday
12. Chaitra Sukladi/Gudi Padava/Ugadi/Cheti Chand April 08 Chaitra 19 Friday
13. Vaisakhi/Vishu April 13 Chaitra 24 Wednesday
14. Masadi/Vaisakhadi,Bahag Bihu (Asam) April 14 Chaitra 25 Thursday
15. Hazarat Ali’s Birthday April 21 Vaisakha 01 Thursday
16. Guru Rabindranath’s birthday May 08 Vaisakha 18 Sunday
17. Jamat-Ul-Vida July 01 Ashadha 10 Friday
18. Rath Yatra July 06 Ashadha 15 Wednesday
19. Parsi New Year’s day/Nauraj August 17 Sravana 26 Wednesday
20. Raksha Bandhan August 18 Sarvana 27 Thursday
21. Ganesh
Chaturthi/Vinayaka
Chaturthi
September 05 Bhadra 14 Monday

22. Onam September 14 Bhadra 23 Wednesday
23. Dussehra (Maha Saptami) (Additional) October 08 Asvina 16 Satürday
24. Dussehra (Maha Ashtami) (Additional) October 09 Asvina 17 Sunday
25. Dussehra (Maha Navmi) October 10 Asvina 18 Monday
26. Maharishi Valmiki’s Birthday October 16 Asvina 24 Suriday
27. Karaka Chaturthi (Karva Chouth) October 19 Asvina 27 Wednesday
28. Deepavali (South India) October 29 Kartika 07 Satürday
29. Naraka Chaturdasi October 29 Kartika 07 Satürday
30. Govardhan Puja October 31 Kartika 09 Monday
31. Bhai Duj November 01 Kartika 10 Tuesday
32. Pratihar Sashthi or Surya Sashthi (Chhat Puja) November 06 Kartika 15 Suriday
33. Guru Teg Bahadur’s
Martyrdom Day
November 24 Agrahayana 03 Thursday
34. Christmas Eve December 24 Pausha 03 Satürday