Harvest Festivals of India: Why Sankranti, Pongal, Baisakhi and Onam Fall When They Do

Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Lohri, Magh Bihu, Baisakhi, Onam and Nabanna are harvest festivals: each falls when a crop comes home, which is why India's festival year follows its farming year. Makar Sankranti stays on 14 or 15 January because it follows the Sun, not the Moon.

Last updated: 14 October 2026

Every January the family group asks the same question: is Sankranti on the 14th or the 15th? The til-gud and the kite string are bought either way.

Know why each festival falls when it does, and every one lands on its right day.

Which are the harvest festivals of India?

India's harvest festivals mark the moment each region's crop comes home: the winter grain in January, the wheat in April, the paddy from August to December.

Why is Makar Sankranti on 14 or 15 January?

Makar Sankranti falls on 14 or 15 January because it marks the Sun's entry into Makara (Capricorn), and the Sun's sidereal year keeps that entry on almost the same date every year. Most festivals follow the Moon's tithi and move by up to a few weeks; Sankranti follows the Sun.

Whether it is the 14th or the 15th depends on the moment the Sun enters Makara. When the entry comes after sunset, the festival and its punya kaal are kept the next day.

Makar Sankranti also begins Uttarayana, the Sun's northward course, and the season of shubh beginnings.

Why do Pongal, Lohri, Bihu and Sankranti fall together?

Pongal, Lohri, Magh Bihu and Makar Sankranti fall together because they mark the same moment: the Sun's entry into Makara, with the winter harvest home. Each region names the day for its own crop and custom:

• Pongal: rice and milk boiled until it overflows, for plenty (Tamil Nadu)
• Lohri: a bonfire for the sugarcane and winter grain (Punjab)
• Magh Bihu: community feasts once the granaries are full (Assam)
• Kanuma: a day for the cattle that ploughed the fields (Andhra Pradesh)

One harvest, one solar date, many names. The shared date comes from the Sun; the reason to celebrate is in the granary.

Baisakhi: the wheat harvest and a new year

Baisakhi, on 13 or 14 April, marks the rabi wheat harvest in Punjab and begins the new year in several regional calendars. The wheat sown in the cool months now stands ready to cut.

In 1699, Guru Gobind Singh founded the Khalsa on Baisakhi, and the day carries both meanings together.

Onam: Mahabali's homecoming at the paddy harvest

Onam falls in the Malayalam month of Chingam (August to September), when Kerala's paddy is harvested and King Mahabali returns to visit his people. Ten days of flower carpets and boat races welcome him.

The Onam Sadhya, a full feast on a banana leaf, is the harvest made into a meal.

Nabanna: the new rice offered first

Nabanna means "new rice": in Bengal, in the month of Agrahayan (November to December), the first rice of the harvest is offered to Lakshmi before the family eats it. Payesh and other dishes of the new grain follow.

The shastras give the first eating of new grain (navanna) its own muhurat:

नवान्नं स्याच्चरक्िप्रमृदुमे सत्तनौ शुभम् विना नन्दाविषघटीमघुपौषाकिंमूमिजान् "The eating of new grain is auspicious in the chara, kshipra and mridu nakshatras, with a good ascendant, excepting the nanda tithis, the vishaghati, the months of Chaitra and Pausha, and Tuesday." (Muhurta Chintamani 2.39)

Festivals of the sowing and the bullocks

The farming year has festivals beyond the harvest: for the bulls, for the sowing, and for the rain.

• Pola: farming families of Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh rest, bathe and worship their bulls (31 August 2027).
• Akshaya Tritiya: in Odisha and other farming regions, the sowing season begins (9 May 2027).
• Sarhul: the villages of Jharkhand pray at the sacred grove for good rain and a good harvest (9 April 2027).
• Karma Puja: Jharkhand prays to Karam Raja for rain and a good harvest (11 September 2027).

And Cherchera, on Paush Purnima, is Chhattisgarh's thanksgiving for the new harvest: children go door to door for grain, and every home gives.

The shastras time the sowing and the harvest too

The shastras give sowing, harvesting and the storing of grain their own muhurat, so each step of the season begins on a day that favours it. For sowing, they name the nakshatras that suit the seed and keep Tuesday out.

A sowing day worked out for your fields gives the crop its best start. Tarini works out the sowing muhurat and the harvesting muhurat for your fields' location, from the shastra rules for each.

Frequently asked questions

Which are the main harvest festivals of India?

The main harvest festivals of India are Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Lohri and Magh Bihu in January, Baisakhi in April, Onam in August or September, and Nabanna in November or December. Cherchera, Pola, Sarhul, Akshaya Tritiya and Karma Puja mark the harvest, the bulls and the sowing in their regions.

Why is Makar Sankranti always on 14 or 15 January?

Makar Sankranti is always on 14 or 15 January because it marks the Sun's entry into Makara, which follows the Sun's year rather than the Moon's. When the entry comes after sunset, the festival is kept the next day.

Are Pongal, Lohri and Makar Sankranti the same festival?

Pongal, Lohri and Makar Sankranti mark the same moment, the Sun's entry into Makara at the winter harvest, celebrated in each region with its own name and customs. Lohri is the night before; Pongal runs four days in Tamil Nadu.

Why is Onam called a harvest festival?

Onam is a harvest festival because it falls in Chingam, the month of Kerala's paddy harvest, and its Sadhya feast celebrates the new grain. It also marks King Mahabali's yearly homecoming.

Which festival celebrates the rabi harvest?

Baisakhi celebrates the rabi harvest. On 13 or 14 April, Punjab and its neighbours mark the cutting of the wheat, and several regional calendars begin the new year.

Is there a shubh muhurat for sowing seeds?

Yes, the shastras give sowing its own muhurat, naming the nakshatras that suit the seed and keeping Tuesday out. Tarini works out the sowing muhurat for your fields' location.

Where can I find festival dates for my city?

Tarini's free festival calendar gives the dates and puja timings of 100+ festivals and vrats, worked out for your city.

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