Clarification on the Holiday Confusion for September 19, 2024, in Punjab
There has been widespread confusion regarding whether a holiday falls on September 19, 2024, in Punjab. This misunderstanding stems from the 2023 decision by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to declare a public holiday on this date for Samvatsari Diwas, an important Jain festival. However, for the year 2024, the holiday was designated as a restricted one and moved to September 7.
Restricted holidays allow institutions to choose specific dates from a list provided by the government, and many schools had already marked Samvatsari on September 7. As a result, they used their restricted holiday allocation, leaving no official holiday scheduled for September 19, 2024.
Despite the clear guidelines, there have been persistent rumors that a holiday would still be observed on September 19. This confusion likely arose because of the previous year’s announcement, leading some to believe that the same schedule would apply in 2024. However, it is important to note that this holiday was shifted to an earlier date, and institutions have already accounted for it.
For clarity, there is no public or restricted holiday on September 19, 2024. The only observance tied to Samvatsari in the official government calendar was the restricted holiday on September 7. Schools and other institutions that marked the occasion on that date should consider that their official observance.
This clarification should resolve any uncertainty about the holiday and ensure there are no further misunderstandings about whether schools or offices will be closed on September 19, 2024.