Official List of Public, Bank & Government Holidays in India (2026)

Gazetted holidays are mandatory non-working days for government institutions, banks, and public sectors, and are standardly adopted by private organizations. Restricted Holidays (RH) or Floating/Optional Holidays are chosen from a notified list by employees according to their individual religious and cultural preferences (usually 2 to 3 days per year per company leave policy).

Yes. Republic Day (26 Jan), Independence Day (15 Aug), and Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti (2 Oct) are mandatory paid holidays across all public and private establishments in India under the National and Festival Holidays Act. If an employee is required to work due to 24/7 business operations, they are legally entitled to overtime wages (double pay) or a compensatory day off.

Bank holidays are officially declared by the Ministry of Finance and respective state governments under Section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. On these days, financial clearing houses and bank branches remain closed for public business.

Yes. Section 52(1)(b) of the Factories Act, 1948 and corresponding State Shops & Commercial Establishments Acts mandate that every employee is entitled to a weekly rest day, traditionally observed on Sunday unless substituted with an alternative compensatory rest day within the same week.

Modern HR practices implement a hybrid holiday policy: 3 mandatory National Holidays, 5 to 7 mandatory state/location-specific regional festival holidays based on the employee's workstation, and 2 to 3 Floating/Restricted Holidays that employees can pick from the annual calendar. In SleetHR, state holiday calendars sync automatically with employee shift rosters and biometric machines.

When a public holiday falls on a weekend, there is no central statutory rule in India requiring an automatic substitute Monday holiday (unlike some Western countries), unless specifically stated in the company's internal employment handbook or union standing orders.