Bank holidays next week (20-26 April): Banks to be closed for up to 3 days for Akshaya Tritiya; Bengal, Tamil Nadu polls

Banks across India will remain closed today because all financial institutions remain closed on Sunday. Regional festival of Maharshi Parasuram Jayanti is being observed today — 19 April. On this auspicious day, banks usually remain closed in Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Since, this day is coinciding with a Sunday, it is already a bank holiday nationwide.

As per Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) calendar, all scheduled and non-scheduled banks in India remain close on the second and fourth Saturdays every month, including commercial banks, cooperative banks, Regional Rural Banks (RRB) and Small Finance Banks (SMB) and Local Area Banks (LAB). Let’s have a look at RBI’s holiday schedule to understand when while banks be closed in the coming week.

• On 21 April, Garia Puja will be observed on account of which banks will remain closed in Tripura on Tuesday.
• On 23 April, General Elections to Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly 2026 are scheduled due to which banks across the state will suspend services on Thursday.

Banks in West Bengal are expected to be closed on two days in view of General Elections which will be held in two phase, With first phase polling scheduled for Thursday, 23 April, bank closure will be observed in the specific constituencies where there will be polling a day.

• On 25 April, banks across India will be closed on account of fourth Saturday.
• On 26 April, all private and public sector banks will be closed and offline banking services will resume on Monday — 27 April.
• On 29 April which marks Phase II of polling will take place in West Bengal, a paid bank holiday is mandatory for affected constituencies.

All banks follow a schedule of national and government holidays set by the RBI with a few holidays falling under ‘Banks’ Closing of Accounts’ while the rest come in ‘Negotiable Instruments Act’ category. In addition to the 3 national holidays, the government has declared several “Gazetted” holidays, which are generally holidays for banks and financial institutions, besides central government offices. Since, regional festivities differ from state to state, so bank holidays vary by region.

What about RTGS and NEFT holidays in 2026?

RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) and NEFT (National Electronic Funds Transfer) systems, which enables cash transfers between banks and are maintained by India’s central bank, remain operational 24/7. This facility has been available on all days since 14 December 2020.

Will online banking be accessible on bank holiday?

Yes, online banking services will function as usual even on bank holidays. Digital services are accessible throughout the year enabling customers to carry out online banking activities without interruption, even when banks are closed.

Multiple tasks can be done through online banking service, including UPI transactions, money transfers, net banking services, applying for loans online and requesting a chequebook among others.

Are ATMs operational during bank holidays?

ATMs remain fully functional even on bank holidays, allowing customers to conduct transactions such as withdraw and deposit cash even when bank branches are closed.