If you’re searching for the Rajasthan Calendar March 2026, you’ve picked a month that turned out to be more eventful than a standard festival list suggests. Holi anchors the month as always, but this year Holika Dahan landed on the same evening as a total lunar eclipse — a genuine rarity that had puja timings under debate right up to the day itself. Add Eid-ul-Fitr, Ram Navami, Mahavir Jayanti, and two Ekadashi fasts, and March 2026 turns out to be one of the busier Panchang months of the year. This guide lays out every confirmed date, corrects a mix-up that circulates on a few older calendars, and includes a free PDF download near the end.
How Dates on the Rajasthan Calendar Are Worked Out
Rajasthan follows the Purnimanta Panchang, the North Indian lunar system where each month closes on the full moon rather than the new moon. Festival and vrat dates here are calculated on Udayatithi — the tithi active at sunrise — while dates tied to the Islamic calendar, like Eid-ul-Fitr, depend on an actual crescent-moon sighting rather than calculation alone. That distinction matters this month: the Hindu tithi-based dates below were fixed well in advance and didn’t shift, but Eid’s date was only confirmed a couple of days before it arrived, once local moon-sighting committees reported back.
Why March 2026 Is Worth Getting Right
Two things make this particular March calendar trickier than usual to pin down accurately. First, Holika Dahan fell on the evening of a total lunar eclipse, which pushed the exact puja timing into genuine dispute among Panchang followers in the days beforehand — some argued for observing it a day earlier to avoid the eclipse’s Sutak period entirely. Second, a handful of calendars circulating online list Holika Dahan on a date days apart from Holi itself, which doesn’t match how the festival actually works — Holika Dahan is always the evening before Rangwali Holi, never several days earlier. Both points are cleared up in detail below.
Download the Rajasthan Calendar March 2026 PDF
If you’d rather keep this month’s dates saved somewhere you can check offline, the Rajasthan Calendar March 2026 is available as a free, printable PDF. It carries every date from this guide in one simple layout, with nothing to sign up for or pay.
- Click the download link on this page.
- The PDF saves directly to your device.
- Print it and pin it up at home or in the office for quick reference.
- If you’re only after one specific date, use Ctrl+F to search the PDF instead of scrolling.
Rajasthan Calendar March 2026 – Festival and Holiday Table
| Date (2026) | Day | Festival / Vrat | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 3 | Tuesday | Holika Dahan (with total lunar eclipse) | Festival |
| March 4 | Wednesday | Holi / Dhuleti (Rangwali Holi) | State Holiday |
| March 8 | Sunday | Papmochani Ekadashi | Ekadashi |
| March 14 | Saturday | 2nd Saturday Bank Holiday | Bank Holiday |
| March 21 | Saturday | Eid-ul-Fitr | Gazetted Holiday |
| March 22 | Sunday | Chaitra Amavasya | Lunar / Vrat |
| March 26 | Thursday | Ram Navami | Gazetted Holiday |
| March 29 | Sunday | Kamada Ekadashi | Ekadashi |
| March 31 | Tuesday | Mahavir Jayanti | Gazetted Holiday |
A correction worth flagging: some calendars list Holika Dahan several days before Holi, sometimes as early as March 1. That doesn’t match this year’s actual Panchang — Phalguna Purnima ran from the evening of March 2 to the evening of March 3, which placed Holika Dahan firmly on March 3, the night immediately before Rangwali Holi on March 4.
Every Date on the March 2026 Calendar, Explained
Holika Dahan and the Same-Night Lunar Eclipse (March 3)
This year’s Holika Dahan came with an unusual complication: a total lunar eclipse fell on the very same date, the first time the two had coincided in some time. In the days leading up to it, there was real back-and-forth among Panchang followers over whether the bonfire ritual should be pushed to March 2 instead, to sidestep the eclipse’s Sutak Kaal (the inauspicious period before an eclipse during which certain rituals are paused). In the end, the timing worked out cleanly: Bhadra Kaal, another period traditionally avoided for Holika Dahan, ran from the evening of March 2 until the early hours of March 3, while Purnima Tithi remained active through the evening of March 3 itself. That left a clear window on the evening of March 3 — after Bhadra ended and before the eclipse’s Sutak period took hold — for the ritual to be performed in the traditional way, and that’s the date temples and households across Rajasthan ultimately settled on. Devotees gather around the bonfire, offer grains and coconut, and perform a parikrama, symbolising the burning away of negativity and the triumph of devotion over ego.
Holi / Dhuleti / Rangwali Holi (March 4)
The festival of colours falls on Wednesday, March 4, and is a State Holiday across Rajasthan — schools, offices, and banks all close for the day. Streets fill with colour, music, and sweets, and the celebration marks both the arrival of spring and the mythological victory of devotion over the demoness Holika. In Rajasthan specifically, cities like Jaipur, Pushkar, and Udaipur are known for particularly large public Holi gatherings that draw visitors well beyond the local community.
Papmochani Ekadashi (March 8)
Falling on a Sunday, this Ekadashi is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and is traditionally observed as a day for seeking release from past sins — the name itself translates roughly to “sin-removing.” Devotees who keep the vrat typically fast through the day and offer prayers in the evening, breaking the fast the following morning.
Second Saturday Bank Holiday (March 14)
As per the Reserve Bank of India’s standard holiday pattern, the second Saturday of every month is a bank holiday nationwide, and March 14 is this month’s occurrence in Rajasthan. It’s not tied to any festival — just the regular monthly schedule — but it’s worth marking if you have banking work planned around this date.
Eid-ul-Fitr (March 21)
Eid-ul-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramzan, was confirmed for Saturday, March 21, 2026, after India’s moon-sighting committees reported that the Shawwal crescent wasn’t visible on the evening of March 19 — pushing Ramadan to a full 30 days rather than the shorter 29-day count some had initially expected. This is a gazetted public holiday across Rajasthan, with government offices, banks, and most schools closed. The day itself is marked by special morning prayers, followed by family gatherings, festive meals, and the exchange of Eidi (gifts, often cash, given to children) — earning it the popular nickname “Meethi Eid” for the sweets that feature heavily in the celebrations.
Chaitra Amavasya (March 22)
This new moon day, falling the day after Eid, is set aside for Pitru Tarpan — offerings made in memory of ancestors — along with sacred bathing and charitable giving. Many families treat Amavasya as a quieter, more reflective date compared to the festivals surrounding it.
Ram Navami (March 26)
Ram Navami, celebrating the birth of Lord Rama, falls on Thursday, March 26, and is a gazetted holiday across Rajasthan. The date marks the culmination of Chaitra Navratri, and temples across the state — along with major pilgrimage centres elsewhere in the country — see elaborate decorations, Ramayana recitations, and daylong bhajans and kirtans. Some Vaishnava traditions observe the festival a day later, on March 27, though March 26 is the date recognised on the official gazetted holiday list.
Kamada Ekadashi (March 29)
The month’s second Ekadashi falls on a Sunday and is considered especially significant for fulfilling personal wishes and desires when observed with sincere devotion — the name “Kamada” translates roughly to “wish-fulfilling.” As with other Ekadashis, the day involves fasting and prayer to Lord Vishnu, with the fast broken the following morning.
Mahavir Jayanti (March 31)
March closes with Mahavir Jayanti, marking the birth of Lord Mahavir, the twenty-fourth and final Tirthankara of Jainism. It’s a gazetted holiday across Rajasthan, a state with a significant and historically prominent Jain community, particularly in cities like Jaipur, Udaipur, and Bikaner. Jain temples hold special processions, readings from Jain scripture, and community meals, with the day’s themes of non-violence and truth widely reflected upon even outside the Jain community itself.
Bank Holidays in Rajasthan — March 2026
Beyond the regular second-Saturday closure on March 14, banks across Rajasthan also remain shut on the month’s two gazetted holidays — Eid-ul-Fitr (March 21) and Ram Navami and Mahavir Jayanti round out the gazetted list toward month’s end. If you have time-sensitive banking work, it’s worth planning around all four of these dates rather than just the festivals you might already have circled.
Why It’s Worth Tracking This Calendar
A clear month-by-month calendar like this one earns its keep in a few concrete ways: it lets you plan pujas and vrats well ahead of time, helps you schedule banking or government-office errands around gazetted closures, gives students a fixed reference for exam or study planning, and makes it easier to pick a date for a family function or small celebration without accidentally landing on a closed venue or a fasting day. For a state where the lunar Panchang still shapes daily life alongside the standard Gregorian calendar, having both systems mapped onto the same table is genuinely useful rather than a nice-to-have.
How This Calendar Was Verified
The gazetted and tithi-based dates here — Holi, Ram Navami, Mahavir Jayanti, and the Ekadashi and Amavasya dates — follow standard Udayatithi Panchang calculations and were confirmed against the actual outcome once March 2026 had passed, including the Holika Dahan and eclipse timing that generated some debate beforehand. The Eid-ul-Fitr date reflects the confirmed moon-sighting outcome (March 21) rather than the earlier “expected March 20 or 21” range that circulated before the announcement. If you’re cross-checking this page against an older printed calendar, the Holika Dahan date in particular is worth double-checking, since a few sources still list it several days ahead of Holi rather than on the eve immediately before it.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Holika Dahan in 2026? Holika Dahan was observed on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, the evening before Holi — not several days earlier, despite what a few older calendars list.
Did the March 2026 lunar eclipse affect Holika Dahan? It came close. The eclipse’s Sutak period led to debate over whether the ritual should move to March 2, but Bhadra Kaal ended early enough on March 3, and Purnima Tithi remained active through that evening, so most households and temples performed Holika Dahan on March 3 as usual, before the eclipse’s Sutak period began.
When was Eid-ul-Fitr confirmed for in India in 2026? Saturday, March 21, 2026, after the Shawwal crescent moon wasn’t sighted in India on the evening of March 19, extending Ramadan to a full 30 days.
Is Ram Navami a gazetted holiday in Rajasthan? Yes. Ram Navami on March 26, 2026, is a gazetted holiday, so government offices, banks, and schools remain closed.
When is the bank holiday in Rajasthan in March 2026 apart from festivals? The second Saturday bank holiday falls on March 14, 2026, in addition to closures on Eid-ul-Fitr, Ram Navami, and Mahavir Jayanti.
Can I download the Rajasthan Calendar March 2026 PDF for free? Yes, using the download link earlier in this article, with no sign-up or payment required.
Conclusion
The Rajasthan Calendar March 2026 carries far more than its headline Holi celebration — a same-night lunar eclipse complicated Holika Dahan timing, Eid-ul-Fitr’s date stayed unconfirmed until just two days before it arrived, and Ram Navami and Mahavir Jayanti closed out the month with back-to-back gazetted holidays. Use the table above to keep every date straight, and download the free PDF so you have the full month on hand without needing to double-check it again.