Bank Holidays 2024: Banks Will Be Closed For Three Days From December 16-22

Bank Holidays 2024: Indian banks will be closed for three days from December 16 to December 22. Bank holidays vary from state to state, and hence, not all banks in the country will be closed on the same day except for national holidays. Also, the second and fourth Saturdays are all bank holidays. RBI decides the list of bank holidays in India.

December 16 and December 17:

Banks will be open on these two days across India.

December 18:

Banks will be closed in the Shillong region on December 18, the Anniversary of U SoSo Tham's death.

U Soso Tham - born in 1873 in Sohra, or Cherrapunjee, Meghalaya, was a Khasi poet. He was the first poet to initiate secular literature with diction, both singular and genuine. He was also the first person to use Khasi idioms in a form taken mainly from English poetry. U Soso Tham is remembered for his beautiful poems. His "Ka Duitara Kshiar" (The Golden Harp, 1925) - a compilation of poems, is one of the most distinguished works, as per the Ok North East website.

December 19:

This day will be a bank holiday for employees residing in Goa. As per the RBI list, Panaji, the capital of the state, will have a bank holiday on December 19. This is due to Goa Liberation Day.

Goa, Daman and Diu Liberation Day is observed on December 19 every year in Goa, India. The Goa Liberation Day is celebrated in commemoration of the Indian armed forces annexing Portuguese-ruled Goa in 1961, after which India was free of any European rule, as per Wikipedia.

December 20, 21, and 22:

Banks will be opened 20th as normal, and since December 21st is the third Saturday of the month, they will be operational on that day as well. Banks will be closed on December 22 as Sunday is a default holiday.

In general terms, RBI decides the list of bank holidays in overall India. What is operational during bank holidays? Services like ATMs, internet banking, and mobile banking are accessible irrespective of bank holidays.

What is closed during bank holidays? Visit to branches is not possible during bank holidays. Also, payment services or cash deposits or large transactions that require you to visit branches, will not be accessible.

Bank holidays in India, vary from state to state and city to city, though there are numerous Public Holidays in the year 2024 which are applicable throughout the country. Some of these holidays include Republic Day (Jan 26), Independence Day (Aug 15) and Gandhi Jayanti (Oct 2). Apart from these, there are important religious and festival holidays such as Diwali, Dussehra, Christmas, Eid, Guru Nanak Jayanthi, Good Friday, Ganesh Chaturthi, Budh Purnima etc.

Bank holidays in India and for that matter, the public holidays are decided by the central government, the state government and the various union territories in the country. As per RBI, bank holidays are divided into three categories. These are holidays under the Negotiable Instruments Act; holidays under the Negotiable Instruments Act and Real Time Gross Settlement Holidays; and banks' closing of accounts.