Bank Holidays 2024: Why Banks Will Be Closed On December 18 & 19? Find Out And Check City-Wise List

Bank Holidays 2024: Indian banks in several regions of India will be closed on December 18 and December 19, as per the latest holiday list of RBI. Bank holidays in India vary from state to state. However, common holidays that every bank follows are national holidays, major events and second & fourth Saturdays every month. It is the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) who decides the holidays for scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) in the country.

December 18:

Banks will be closed in the regions of Shillong on December 18, due to the occasion of Death Anniversary of U SoSo Tham.

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 make use of Khasi idioms in a form taken mainly from English poetry. U Soso Tham is basically 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:

On this day, banks will be closed in regions of 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[2] 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.

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.

In generic terms, 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.

Also, Banks are closed on the second and fourth Saturdays of every month in addition to the above-mentioned bank holidays. The fifth Saturday of a month with five Saturdays is a working day for banks. In the past, banks would only open for a half-day on Saturdays.

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.