Durga Puja holidays vary from 3 to 16 days across Bangladesh institutions

Students and teachers across Bangladesh will get different lengths of holidays for the upcoming Durga Puja, with breaks ranging from three days at madrasa institutions to as many as 16 days for some colleges when weekly holidays are included. Universities will follow their individual academic calendars.

The country's largest Hindu festival, Sharadiya Durga Puja, will be observed in October. According to the government holiday calendar, government employees will receive two public holidays for the festival, on October 20 for Mahanavami and October 21 for Bijoya Dashami.

Schools may get up to 10 days

Government and private secondary and lower-secondary schools will have five official holidays from October 18 to October 22, according to the Education Ministry's holiday calendar.

As October 16 and 17 fall on Friday and Saturday, students may effectively get a longer break by combining the weekly holidays with the Puja vacation.

October 25 is also Lakshmi Puja, which may further extend the break. Based on the calendar, the overall break could run from October 16 to October 25, making it up to 10 days.

However, the actual duration may depend on decisions by the Education Ministry and its directorates. Changes may also be made based on the academic calendar and institutional requirements.

Colleges to get up to 16 days including weekends

According to a notice issued by the College-4 branch of the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education, colleges will remain closed from October 18 to October 29, excluding the intervening Fridays and Saturdays.

The 10-day holiday period covers Durga Puja, Bijoya Dashami, Prabarana Purnima and Lakshmi Puja on October 25.

When the weekly holidays immediately before and after the vacation, October 16-17 and October 30-31, are included, the break extends to 16 days.

Madrasas to get three-day holiday

Teachers and students of government and private, MPO-listed and Ebtedayee madrasas will receive a three-day holiday for Durga Puja.

According to the Madrasa Education Directorate's holiday calendar, the break will run from October 20 to October 22.

Universities to follow their own calendars

Holiday arrangements for universities are different because public universities enjoy autonomy over their academic and administrative calendars.

Universities generally declare their own holidays for Durga Puja based on their individual academic calendars. As a result, the number of days for which academic and administrative activities will remain suspended varies from institution to institution.

The University of Dhaka has announced a 10-day holiday this year covering Durga Puja, autumn vacation and Lakshmi Puja.

Academic calendars of several other universities, including Jagannath University, Rajshahi University, Islamic University, Jahangirnagar University, Chittagong University and Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, also include holidays for Durga Puja.

However, the situation is not uniform across all public and private universities. Some institutions may continue regular activities depending on their individual academic calendars and administrative decisions.

Students and teachers should therefore check the latest notice or academic calendar issued by their respective university before making holiday plans.

Durga Puja calendar

This year's Mahalaya will be observed on October 10.

The main Puja days will follow:

• October 16: Maha Shashthi
• October 18: Maha Saptami
• October 19: Maha Ashtami
• October 20: Mahanavami
• October 21: Bijoya Dashami