According to the official holiday calendar, markets will remain shut for two more days in March. NSE and BSE will remain closed for trading on March 26 (Thursday) for Shri Ram Navami, and then on March 31 (Tuesday) for Shri Mahavir Jayanti.
Ugadi will be celebrated on Thursday, March 19. The festival marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year, and is widely celebrated in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, while it is known as Yugadi in Karnataka.
Gudi Padwa marks the Marathi New Year, and is celebrated widely in Maharashtra. This festival too will be celebrated on March 19.
Eid-Ul-Fitr is likely to be celebrated on Saturday, March 21, and the sighting of the moon is likely to happen on the Friday evening of March 20, marking the culmination of the holy month of Ramadan.
Notably, as per the original holiday list published by the stock exchanges before the beginning of the year, Eid-Ul-Fitr was one of the four market holidays that fell on a Saturday or Sunday. The other three include Mahashivratri (Sunday, February 15), Independence Day (Sunday, August 15) and Diwali Laxmi Pujan (November 8).
Earlier on March 3, Indian stock markets were closed on account of Holi. This led to some confusion among investors because the festival of colours was celebrated in most parts of the country on March 4 instead.Indian stock markets are set to see 11 more market holidays this year, with two coming up in April. NSE and BSE will remain shut on April 3 on account of Good Friday, and on April 14 on Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Jayanti.
The exchanges may alter any of the above holidays, for which a separate circular shall be issued in advance.
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