Check Central Government Holiday List 2023: Know When Central Government Offices to Remain Closed

Central government holidays are the public holidays in India which are announced by the Union Government. These holidays apply to all central government offices in the country. The department of personnel and Training shoulders the responsibility of preparing and releasing the Central/ Union Government list of holidays.

There are two types of holidays in the list of gazetted holidays 2023 in central government i.e. Mandatory holidays and Restricted holidays. The mandatory holidays are given to all employees. On the other hand, employees get to choose the 2 holidays from the list of restricted holidays. So, it is important for all employees to know and understand the list and plan their holidays accordingly.

Central government holidays in 2023

There are 19 days of holidays in total that a central government employee can enjoy this year. These holidays are further divided into national, gazetted and restricted holidays in the following manner. 

List of Central Government Offices Holidays

Central Government Administrative Offices located in Delhi/ New Delhi or outside will remain closed on the following days.

Central Government Compulsory Holidays List (14 Days)

Additional Holidays for Central Government Employees in 2023

In addition to the holidays, mentioned in the above table. Central government employees will also get three holidays from the list given below. For employees working in Delhi/ New Delhi, the Department of Personnel & Training will choose these holidays.

The Central Government Employees Welfare Coordination Committee in the state capitals will choose these three holidays for employees working outside Delhi/ New Delhi. 

1. Holi – 8th March
2. Janmashtami – 6th/ 7th September
3. Ram Navami – 30th March
4. Maha Shivratri – 18th February
5. Ganesh Chaturthi / Vinayak Chaturthi – 19th September
6. Makar Sankranti – 15th January
7. Rath Yatra – 20th June
8. Onam – 29th August
9. Pongal – 15th January
10. Sri Panchami / Basant Panchami – 26th January
11. An Additional Day for Dussehra
12. Vishu/ Vaisakhi/ Vaisakhadi/ Bhag Bihu/ Mashadi Ugadi/ Chaitra Sukladi/ Cheti Chand/ Gudi Padava/ 1st Navratra/ Naoraz/ Chhath Puja/ Karva Chauth

Additional Information about Central Government

There are a few important things regarding holidays that the central government has instructed all departments to follow. Let’s take a look at them.

• The government will not give a substitute holiday if the festival holiday falls on a weekly off. The same is also applicable in case two festivals fall on the same date.
• All employees working in Delhi/ New Delhi should follow the declaration of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pension regarding the holidays of Idu’l Fitr, Idu’l Zaha, Muharram, and Id-e-Milad. It is so because the dates of these festivals depend upon sighting of the Moon. The concerned state government will release the notification regarding the same for employees working outside Delhi.
• It is possible that there will be a change in the festival’s date on very short notice. In such a situation, the government will release a notification through PIB/ TV/ AIR/ Newspapers. The head of department/ offices of the central government may take action according to such an announcement, without waiting for a formal order.
• In some states, there are practices to celebrate Diwali a day in advance like “Naraka Chaturdasi Day. The central government will not object if the state government of such a state decides to observe the holiday on “Naraka Chaturdasi Day” in place of Diwali.
• Those Central government organisations which include industrial, commercial and trading establishments would observe up to 16 holidays in 2023. These 16 holidays include national holidays i.e. Independence Day, Republic Day, and Mahatma Gandhi. Industrial/ Commercial/ Trading establishments will determine the rest of the holidays.
• In respect of Bank holidays, the department of financial services, Ministry of Finance will release the notification.
• For Indian Missions Abroad, employees will have the option to choose 13 holidays of their own. However, it is compulsory to include the three national holidays, Id-ul-Zuha, Milad-un-Nabi/ Id-e-Milad, and Christmas Day.       

List of Central Government Restricted Holidays

Each employee in the central government is allowed to take two restricted holidays. The central government of India has released the list of 33 restricted holidays for the year 2023. If you are working for the union government then you can choose two of them.

• New Year’s Day – 1st January
• Makar Sankranti/ Magha Bihu – 14th January
• Pongal – 15th January
• Basant Panchami/ Sri Panchami – 26th January
• Hazarat Ali’s Birthday, Guru Ravi Das’s Birthday – 5th February
• Birthday of Swami Dayananda Saraswati – 15th February
• Maha Shivaratri – 18th February
• Shivaji Jayanti – 19th February
• Holika Dahan – 7th March
• Gudi Padava/ Ugadi/ Chaiti – 22nd March
• Easter Sunday – 9th April
• Vaishakhi Meshadi/ Vishu – 14th April
• Vaishakhi (Bengal) (Assam)/ Vihag Bihu – 15th April
• Jamat Vida-Ul – 21st April
• Guru Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti – 9th May
• Rath Yatra – 20 June
• Parsi Nav Varsha (Navroz) – 16th August
• Vinayak Chaturthi – 20 August
• Onam Thiru (Onam Day) – 29th August
• Raksha Bandhan – 30th August
• Janmashtami – 6th September
• Ganesh Chaturthi – 19th September
• Dussehra (Saptami) – 21st October
• Dussehra (Ashtami) – 22nd October
• Dussehra (Maha Navmi) – 23rd October
• Maharishi Valmiki Jayanti – 28th October
• Karak Chaturthi/ Karva Chauth – 1st November
• Narak Chaturthi – 12th November
• Govardhan Puja – 13th November
• Bhai Dooj – 15th November
• Chhath Puja – 19th November
• Guru Teg Bahadur Martyrdom Day – 24th November
• Christmas Eve – 24th December

Note: The coordination committees at the state capitals may draw a separate list of restricted holidays keeping in view the occasions of local importance.

Central government holiday list 2023 pdf

It is always helpful to download the PDF file of a holiday list for future reference. You can view/ download or take a print of the Central government holiday PDF file from here.

Frequently Asked Questions