The Odia calendar, the panjika, fixes Odisha's festivals, fasts and auspicious days. Its months follow the Sun; most of its festivals follow the Moon. This guide explains how it works and why it matters, and lists every important date of 2026, month by month, with its rituals.
- Odia New Year
- 14 April
- Rath Yatra
- 16 July
- Durga Puja
- 17–20 October
- Kartika Purnima
- 24 November
How the Odia calendar works
The Odia months are solar. Each begins at a Sankranti, the day the Sun enters a new sign of the zodiac, so a month starts on almost the same English date every year. Baisakha, the first month, begins with Pana Sankranti in mid-April, the Odia New Year. The day before a Sankranti is Masanta, the end of the month.
Most festivals follow the Moon instead. A lunar month has thirty tithis, lunar days, in two halves: the bright fortnight (shukla paksha) up to the full moon, Purnima, and the dark fortnight (krushna paksha) down to the new moon, Amavasya. That is why Rath Yatra or Diwali moves by up to three weeks from one year to the next, while Makar Sankranti stays on 14 January.
Every few years the lunar year falls a month behind the Sun, and the panjika adds an extra month, Mala masa. In 2026 it ran from 17 May to 15 June, which is why Rath Yatra fell as late as 16 July.
Calendar tools and date lists
- Interactive Odia calendar 2026
- Ekadashi dates 2026
- Purnima and Amavasya 2026
- Sankranti dates 2026
- Koraput festivals 2026
The twelve Odia months in 2026
| Odia month | Begins |
|---|---|
| MaghaSun in Makara | 14 January |
| PhalgunaSun in Kumbha | 13 February |
| ChaitraSun in Mina | 15 March |
| BaisakhaSun in Mesha | 14 April |
| JyeshthaSun in Brusha | 15 May |
| AshadhaSun in Mithuna | 15 June |
| ShravanaSun in Karkata | 17 July |
| BhadravaSun in Simha | 17 August |
| AshwinaSun in Kanya | 17 September |
| KartikaSun in Tula | 17 October |
| MargashiraSun in Bichha | 16 November |
| PaushaSun in Dhanu | 16 December |
Why families check the panjika
- Festivals and fasts: the day of every festival, osha and brata, and the hour to keep it.
- Good days: families look up an auspicious day before a wedding, a thread ceremony, a house-warming or a baby's first rice (annaprashana).
- Farming: it marks the days to sow and the days when ploughs stay idle (hala nishedha), such as the three days of Raja.
- The temple year: it follows Lord Jagannath's year at Puri, from Snana Purnima and Rath Yatra to his many beshas, his special attires.
Years on an Odia calendar
A panjika counts the year in several ways at once. In 2026 Vikram Samvat moved from 2082 to 2083 on 19 March, the first day of the lunar year; the Saka year moved from 1947 to 1948 with the Odia New Year in April; and the sixty-year cycle passed from Siddhartha to Raudra on 9 May. The Gajapati kings' Anka year and San 1434 began on Suniya, 23 September.
Words you'll see in a panjika
- Sankranti: the first day of an Odia month, when the Sun changes sign. Masanta is the day before.
- Purnima and Amavasya: full moon and new moon. Full moons carry the big festivals; new moons are for the ancestors.
- Ekadashi: the eleventh lunar day, twice a month, kept as a fast from grains.
- Osha and brata: vows, mostly kept by women, with a fast and a story, for a husband, a child or a brother.
- Besha: an attire of Lord Jagannath, such as Padma Besha in Magha or Suna Besha after Rath Yatra.
- Hala nishedha: a day when farmers leave the plough idle.
Your week on the road: what each day means
Many Odia families keep a vow or a food rule on a set day of the week. On a trip, that decides where you eat and which temple you stop at, so here is each day.
- Sunday, the Sun's day: some families worship the Sun at dawn and keep a fast, often eating once and without salt.
- Monday, Shiva's day: many families eat no onion and no garlic, and women visit a Shiva temple with water, milk and bel leaves. Mondays in Shravana and Kartika are the most observed.
- Tuesday, Hanuman's and Maa Mangala's day: many keep a fruit-only fast (phalahar) and visit a Bajrangbali temple; many skip meat and fish.
- Wednesday: a day for Ganesh; families start new work or a journey after a short prayer to him.
- Thursday, Lakshmi's day (Gurubara): many families eat vegetarian and women worship Lakshmi at home; in Margashira this becomes Manabasa Gurubara.
- Friday: women keep the Santoshi Maa fast, avoiding anything sour, and visit Devi temples.
- Saturday, Shani's day: many skip meat and fish, offer mustard oil at a Shani temple, and visit Hanuman too.
Vows kept through a month
Some vows run for a whole Odia month, on the same weekday each week. Families keep these at home and at the temple, and they shape meals on a trip too.
- Baisakha, Mondays: Baisakha Brata; on the last Monday, families keep Lokanatha Brata with a fast, a temple visit and worship.
- Shravana, Mondays: Shravana Somabara, with fasting and worship of Shiva.
- Bhadrava, Sundays: Maa Mangala is worshipped at home every Sunday of the month.
- Ashwina, Dashami: Somanatha Brata, kept with a fast, a puja and pitha.
- Kartika, Mondays: fasting and worship of Shiva on each Monday of the holy month.
- Margashira, Thursdays: Manabasa Gurubara, Lakshmi's worship on each Thursday.
- Chaitra, Tuesdays: Mangala Brata, the worship of Maa Mangala on each Tuesday.
Temples near Koraput, by day
Temples in and around Koraput, Jeypore and Semiliguda, grouped by the day they are busiest. Tap a name for directions in Google Maps.
Shiva temples, for Mondays
| Temple | Google rating |
|---|---|
| Gupteswar cave templeGupteswar, 76 km · Our guide | 4.7 (1,669) |
| Shiva TempleKoraput town | 4.3 (145) |
| Temple of SibaKoraput town | 4.8 (16) |
| Raul Siva TempleKoraput town | 4.1 (17) |
| Baidyanatha TempleJeypore | 4.4 (42) |
| Bhutanath MandirJeypore | 4.3 (24) |
| Shiva Temple, Forest ColonyJeypore | 4.4 (20) |
| Sidheshwar TempleSunabeda | 4.8 (17) |
Hanuman temples, for Tuesdays and Saturdays
| Temple | Google rating |
|---|---|
| Hanuman VatikaDamanjodi | 4.7 (981) |
| Hanuman TempleSemiliguda | 4.3 (45) |
| Hanuman TempleOn the Koraput–Jeypore road | 4.4 (25) |
| Hanuman Temple, Puchila StreetKoraput town | 4.7 (15) |
| Hanuman TempleKoraput town | 4.2 (18) |
| Hanuman TempleJeypore | 4.2 (14) |
Devi temples, for Tuesdays (Maa Mangala) and Fridays
| Temple | Google rating |
|---|---|
| Maa Kanta Baunsuni TempleDamanjodi | 4.7 (409) |
| Sri Sri Agni Ganga Maa TempleSemiliguda | 4.4 (123) |
| Maa Muthyalamma TempleKoraput town | 4.7 (93) |
| Mausima TempleKoraput town | 4.5 (43) |
| Maa Batamangala MandirKoraput town | 4.6 (38) |
| Maa Jagatjanani TempleJeypore | 4.8 (59) |
| Maa Basantai TempleJeypore | 4.3 (47) |
| Jhankardevi TempleJeypore | 4.6 (45) |
| Santoshi Maa TempleJeypore | 4.3 (46) |
| Maa Mangala TempleSunabeda | 4.4 (32) |
Jagannath, Ram and Sai temples, for Thursdays
| Temple | Google rating |
|---|---|
| Sabara Srikhetra (Jagannath)Koraput town · Our guide | 4.7 (4,477) |
| Shree Jagannatha TempleJeypore | 4.7 (187) |
| Jagannath Temple, HAL TownshipSunabeda | 4.5 (130) |
| Shri Ram TempleOn the Koraput–Semiliguda road | 4.4 (79) |
| Sai Baba TempleJeypore | 4.3 (27) |
Shani temples, for Saturdays
| Temple | Google rating |
|---|---|
| Shanischara MandiraKoraput town | 4.8 (5) |
| Shani TempleJeypore | 5.0 (6) |
Ratings and review counts are Google's, checked on 23 October 2026.
Festivals worth planning a Koraput trip around
- Maha Shivaratri, 15 February: about 2 lakh devotees at the Gupteswar cave temple.
- Chaitra Parba, 2 April: the spring festival of Koraput's tribal villages; see the Tribal Museum for their dress and instruments.
- Rath Yatra, 16 July: Koraput's own chariot festival at Sabara Srikhetra.
- Bol Bam, from 3 August: Shravana's pilgrims at Gupteswar.
- The monsoon, June to September: Duduma waterfall at its loudest.
- October to February: clear views from Deomali; winter nights drop to 3 °C, so bring warm clothes.
- Every Thursday: the Onukadelli market, near Duduma.
2026, month by month
- January 2026: Pusha Punei (Pausha Purnima), Makar Sankranti, Basanta Panchami (Saraswati Puja) and Magha Saptami
- February 2026: Magha Purnima, Maha Shivaratri and Phagu Dashami
- March 2026: Dola Purnima, Ugadi and Ashokashtami
- April 2026: Utkal Divas (Odisha Day), Chaitra Parba, Pana Sankranti (Odia New Year) and Akshaya Tritiya
- May 2026: Buddha Purnima, Savitri Brata and Mala masa (the extra month) begins
- June 2026: Pahili Raja, Sitala Sasthi and Snana Purnima
- July 2026: Nabajaubana Darshan, Rath Yatra and Niladri Bije
- August 2026: Bol Bam begins and Raksha Bandhan
- September 2026: Nuakhai
- October 2026: Mahalaya Amavasya, Durga Puja: Maha Saptami and Kumar Purnima
- November 2026: Diwali, Kartika Purnima and Manabasa Gurubara
- December 2026: Prathamastami
Dates from the Kohinoor Press Sankhyepa Panjika 2026, Cuttack.
