Tue Feb 25 03:40:00 UTC 2025: ## Mahashivratri to Cause Bank Closures in Several Indian States
**Mumbai, India** – Banks across several Indian states will be closed on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, in observance of Mahashivratri, a major Hindu festival. While the holiday is not a nationwide observance, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has designated it as a holiday under the Negotiable Instruments Act, resulting in closures in specific regions.
Affected states include Gujarat (Ahmedabad), Mizoram (Aizawl), Maharashtra (Belapur, Mumbai, Nagpur), Karnataka (Bengaluru), Madhya Pradesh (Bhopal), Odisha (Bhubaneswar), Punjab/Haryana/Chandigarh (Chandigarh), Uttarakhand (Dehradun), Telangana & Andhra Pradesh (Hyderabad), Rajasthan (Jaipur), Jammu and Kashmir (Jammu), Uttar Pradesh (Kanpur, Lucknow), Kerala (Kochi), Jharkhand (Ranchi), Himachal Pradesh (Shimla), and Jammu and Kashmir (Srinagar) and Kerala (Thiruvananthapuram).
Although branches will be closed in these locations, online banking services, ATMs, mobile banking apps, and bank websites will remain operational.
The RBI’s February 2025 holiday calendar lists a total of 14 bank holidays, including regional festivals and regular weekend closures. Other regional holidays in February include Saraswati Puja (Agartala), Thai Poosam (Chennai), Guru Ravi Das’s Birthday (Shimla), Lui-Ngai-Ni (Imphal), Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti (Belapur, Mumbai, Nagpur), Statehood Day/State Day (Aizawl, Itanagar) and Losar (Gangtok). Banks will operate as usual on first, third, and fifth Saturdays unless otherwise specified.
**Unrelated Note: Scrap Shop Demolished After “Pakistan Zindabad” Slogan**
In unrelated news, a scrap shop in Maharashtra was demolished after its owner allegedly chanted “Pakistan Zindabad” during the recent India-Pakistan cricket match. Shiv Sena leader Nilesh Rane announced the owner’s expulsion from the district following the incident.
First Piper 