List of Restricted & National Holidays In India

The majority of private companies and then government offices provide a specific number of earned & sick leaves to their employees. However, employees always look forward to other national & restricted holidays coming up on the calendar. Why? Because who doesn’t appreciate some extra time off from work and other stressful duties to enjoy a little personal time in life. 

India is a land of culture and diversity and we love to celebrate occasions and festivals big time. Therefore, we as a country are blessed with festivals of different types, each having its own significance and importance. We have diverse festivals for different seasons of the year and then a diverse number of holidays for those festivals. Also, these festive day-offs are different from national holidays, as national holidays are mandatory offs. Therefore, this makes it a complex task for HR professionals to plan the holiday calendar for their employees. 

It is part of the HR’s duty to make yearly holiday policies for companies at the start of a financial year. Therefore, while setting these holiday policies for companies, referring to the respective year’s holiday calendar released by the government is imperative. HR professionals can check the list of national holidays in India 2023 and plan the leave policies well in advance. Besides central government-gazetted holidays, you may also check the compulsory holidays for private companies in India before releasing the leave policy on your HR software portal.

Moreover, let’s talk about the difference between national and restricted holidays.

list of national and restricted holidays in india

What is a national holiday in India?

A national holiday is a day on which a country, whether sovereign or not, commemorates its independence, establishment, or other significant events. 

There are three national holidays in India. Therefore, annually, the country commemorates Republic Day on January 26th, Independence Day on August 15th, and Gandhi Jayanti on October 2nd.

All national holidays are compulsory holidays for private companies in India.

What is a restricted holiday?

A restricted holiday is one that is discretionary, and it is up to the employee to decide whether or not to take leave on that specific day.

Restricted holidays are also called ‘Optional Holidays’ and are not compulsory holidays for private companies in India. In general, holiday policies for companies may include a number of restricted holidays. However, employees are only permitted to choose from a list of optional holidays (with a maximum limit).

For instance, Sri Ram Navami, Eid, Chhath Puja, etc., are religious festivals of diverse religions, and not every individual celebrates these. So it’s up to the employees to take time off during these specific holidays.

Difference between restricted and national holidays

The key difference between restricted and national holidays is that national holidays are compulsory holidays for private companies in India (or any other office) whereas, restricted holidays are at the discretion of the employee and whether they want to use them or not is up to them.

List of restricted and national holidays in India 2023

Before framing holiday policies for companies, let’s take a look at this list of national and restricted holidays in India 2023.

January 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
New Year 1 January, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Lohri 13 January, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Makar Sakranti 14 January, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Pongal 15 January, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Republic Day/ Vasant Panchmi 26 January, 2023 National Holiday

February 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Guru Ravidas Jayanti/Hazarat Ali's Birthday 5 February, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati Jayanti 15 February, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Maha Shivratri 18 February, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti 19 February, 2023 Restricted Holiday

March 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Dolyatra/Holika Dahana 7 Match, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Holi 8 March, 2023 Public Holiday
Ugadi(Gudi Padwa) - Hindu New Year 22 March, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Ram Navami 30 March, 2023 Gazzeted Holiday

April 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Mahavir Jayanti 4 April, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Good Friday 7 April, 2023 Public Holiday
Ambedkar Jayanti/ Vaisakhi 14 April, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Jamat-Ul-Vida 21 April, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Ramzan/Eid-Ul-Fitar 22 April, 2023 Public Holiday

May 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Buddha Purnima 5 May, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Rabindranath Tagore's Birthday 9 May, 2023 Restricted Holiday

June 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Rath Yatra 20 June, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Bakrid/Eid-Ul-Adha 29 June, 2023 Gazzeted Holiday

July 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Muharram/Ashura 29 July, 2023 Gazzeted Holiday

August 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Independance Day 15 August, 2023 National Holiday
Parsi New Year 16 August, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Onam 29 August, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Raksha Bandhan 30 August, 2023 Public Holiday

September 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Krishna Janamashtami 6 September, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Ganesh Chaturthi 19 September, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Milad-Un-Nabi 28 September, 2023 Restricted Holiday

October 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Gandhi Jayanti 2 October, 2023 National Holiday
Maha Navmi 23 October, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Dussehra 24 October, 2023 Public Holiday
Valmiki Jayanti 28 October, 2023 Restricted Holiday

November 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Karva Chauth 1 November, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Dhan Teras 10 November, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Diwali 12 November, 2023 Public Holiday
Govardhan Puja/Vishkarma Day 13 November, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Bhai Dooj 15 November, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Chhath Puja 19 November, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Guru Teg Bahadur Jayanti 24 November, 2023 Restricted Holiday
Guru Nanak Jayanti 27 November, 2023 Restricted Holiday

December 2023

Event/Occasion Date Holiday Type
Christmas 25 December, 2023 Gazetted Holiday

Wrapping Up

So these are the restricted and national holidays in India 2023, which would give some extra time off to employees all around the country. 

Festivals are meant to be celebrated together and just imagine how pointless it will be to not able to attend these celebrations. This is why every organization must try to implement these leaves in their holiday calendar and put a smile on their employees’ faces. 

FAQs on the list of national and restricted holidays in India 2023

There are 3 national holidays that are observed in every part of the country. These holidays are Republic Day on the 26th of January, Independence Day on the 15th of August, and Gandhi Jayanti on the 2nd of October.

No, the public or government holidays differ from state to state. There might be some common holidays, but there are some holidays that are specific to the culture and history of each state.

No, you can’t, until you are currently residing in that state.

Yes, there are several states which allow their employees to enjoy New Year by making it a public holiday.

Yes, the above restricted and public holidays list is applicable for all the industries including IT/Tech, Manufacturing, Logistics, Healthcare, Software, Mining, Aviation, Hospitality, BFSI, and more.

It totally depends upon the entity location and diversity. You can keep the holiday optional for few employees or permanent holiday for the native festivals.

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