Bank holidays in India are set state by state, and the RBI publishes the list for each state; in November 2026 the widest closure is on 24 November, for Guru Nanak Jayanti and Karthika Purnima, in about 17 states and union territories. Chhath Puja on 16 November closes banks in Bihar and Jharkhand only.
Many families and businesses are checking the calendar for their own state, since the days are not the same everywhere.
Deccan Herald reports that on 9 November, branches in Tripura, Madhya Pradesh, Chandigarh, Sikkim, Manipur, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh are listed as closed for Diwali linked observances. On the next day, the list shows Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Sikkim closed, and this includes the Vikram Samvat New Year.
Where the list comes from
There is no one national list of bank holidays in India. The RBI calendar is based on Section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, which lets each state government and union territory administration announce the days on which cheques and similar instruments cannot be presented.
The RBI then puts these notifications into a calendar for each state and city. It keeps track of three types of days: holidays under the Negotiable Instruments Act, holidays under the Act that are also RTGS holidays, and the banks' yearly closing of accounts.
A state holiday does not automatically turn into a bank holiday. RBI checks every notice from a state before putting it into its list, so a day celebrated by people in one state may not show up as a closed day for banks.
Borrowers and account holders are therefore finding that same festival can close branches in one state and leave them open in the next.
What keeps working during bank holidays
On bank holidays, internet banking, mobile banking, UPI payments and ATM cash withdrawals keep running as normal. Only the tasks that need a branch, like depositing cheques, are affected, and many account holders are doing their usual transfers online on such days.
