Makar Sankranti 2026

When Is Makar Sankranti in 2026?

In 2026, Makar Sankranti falls on January 14. The observance lasts 1–4 days (Pongal is 4 days; Lohri the night before). Makar Sankranti is observed on a fixed date each year. The solar samkranti (sun's transition) is a precise astronomical moment; the observed festival date is based on Indian Standard Time, so it almost always falls on January 14 or 15. As the sidereal and tropical years slowly diverge, the date will eventually drift later (around +1 day per ~70 years), but it is effectively fixed for the 21st century. Makar Sankranti is observed on the same date each year: January 14. Here are the dates for the next five years: Year Date 2026 January 14 2027 January 15 2028 January 15 2029 January 14 2030 January 14

What Time Does Makar Sankranti Start in Your Time Zone?

Makar Sankranti is one of the few Hindu festivals observed on a fixed Gregorian date — usually January 14, occasionally January 15 in leap years. This is because the festival is calculated by the sun's actual transit into the zodiac sign of Capricorn, not by the lunar phase. The transit occurs at a precise astronomical moment, which is the same instant everywhere in the world — but falls on different calendar dates in different time zones in some years. The sun's transit into Capricorn occurs at the same UTC moment each year. In 2026, this transit falls on January 14, and the festival is observed on that date across India. In some years, the transit occurs late on January 14 UTC, which is January 15 in time zones east of UTC — meaning the festival falls on January 15 in India. The 2026 festival is firmly on January 14. The astronomical precision of Makar Sankranti means the festival is one of the few Hindu holidays that is genuinely the same date worldwide. A Hindu family in Delhi, a Tamil family in Singapore, and a Gujarati family in New Jersey all observe Makar Sankranti on January 14, 2026 — though the time of day for rituals varies by local tradition. The table below shows the observance date for Makar Sankranti in major time zones around the world: Location Observance Date Time Zone New York, USA January 14 EST/EDT (UTC-5/-4) London, UK January 14 GMT/BST (UTC+0/+1) New Delhi, India January 14 IST (UTC+5:30) Sydney, Australia January 14 AEST/AEDT (UTC+10/+11) Dubai, UAE January 14 GST (UTC+4)

The Story Behind Makar Sankranti

Makar Sankranti is one of the few Hindu festivals observed on a fixed date — January 14 — because it is calculated by the sun's position rather than the moon's phase. The festival marks the sun's transition into the zodiac sign of Capricorn (Makara in Sanskrit), which signals the beginning of the sun's northward journey (Uttarayana) and the end of the winter solstice period. The day is celebrated across India under different names — Makar Sankranti in the north and west, Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Uttarayan in Gujarat, Lohri in Punjab, Magh Bihu in Assam — but the common theme is the welcoming of longer days and the harvesting of the new crop. The astronomical significance of Makar Sankranti is precise. The Hindu calendar divides the year into two halves based on the sun's movement: Uttarayana, when the sun moves northward (from Capricorn to Cancer), and Dakshinayana, when it moves southward. Makar Sankranti marks the start of Uttarayana — a period considered auspicious in Hindu tradition. The Bhagavad Gita describes the warrior Bhisma, mortally wounded in the Mahabharata war, waiting on a bed of arrows until the start of Uttarayana to die, because the path to heaven was said to be open during this period. Agriculturally, Makar Sankranti coincides with the harvest of the new rice crop in many parts of India, and the festival is fundamentally a harvest celebration. New rice, new jaggery (unrefined cane sugar), new sesame seeds, and new til (sesame) sweets mark the day. The phrase "til-gud ghya, god god bola" — "take sesame and jaggery, speak sweetly" — is a Marathi greeting for the festival, capturing the spirit of warmth and reconciliation that the day is meant to inspire.

How Makar Sankranti Is Celebrated

Makar Sankranti is famous across India for kite-flying, especially in Gujarat, where the festival is called Uttarayan. The skies over Ahmedabad, Surat, and Vadodara fill with millions of kites from dawn to dusk on January 14 (and the days before and after), with rooftop parties, kite-fighting competitions, and the sound of shouted catchphrases like "Lapet!" (when a kite is cut). The International Kite Festival in Ahmedabad draws kite-flyers from around the world, with enormous show kites and traditional fighter kites. The kites themselves are made of lightweight paper and bamboo, with glass-coated strings (manja) used to cut opponents' kites in midair. Food is central to Makar Sankranti, with sesame seeds (til) and jaggery (gur) appearing in sweets across the country. In Maharashtra, the iconic sweet is til-gul ladoo — sesame seeds bound with jaggery into small balls. In Punjab, the festival is called Lohri (celebrated on January 13, the night before Makar Sankranti) and is marked with bonfires, peanuts, popcorn, and rewri (sesame brittle). In Tamil Nadu, the four-day festival of Pongal is the equivalent: the first day is Bhogi (bonfire of old items), the second is Thai Pongal (rice cooked in milk and jaggery in a new clay pot), the third is Mattu Pongal (worship of cattle), and the fourth is Kaanum Pongal (family outings). In Assam, the festival is called Magh Bihu or Bhogali Bihu and is celebrated with community feasts, buffalo fights, and the building of temporary bamboo huts (meji) that are burned the next morning. In Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, the festival is called Sankranti and is marked with the exchange of ellu-bella — a mix of sesame seeds, jaggery, coconut, and fried gram — with the greeting "ellu bella thindu olle maathu adi" — "eat sesame and jaggery, speak good words." In the Himalayan states, the festival is celebrated with ritual bathing in sacred rivers, especially at the confluence (sangam) of the Ganges, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati at Allahabad (Prayagraj).

Makar Sankranti on the Calendar

Makar Sankranti is one of the few Hindu festivals calculated by the sun's position (sauramana) rather than the moon's phase (chandramana). The festival marks the exact moment the sun enters the zodiac sign of Capricorn (Makara). Because the solar year is about 365.24 days, the festival's Gregorian date drifts very slowly — about one day every 70 years. The ancient Hindu astronomers calculated this drift, and the festival was originally celebrated on December 21 (the winter solstice) thousands of years ago. Today, Makar Sankranti falls on January 14 (occasionally January 15). Over the next few centuries, the date will continue to drift slowly forward. By 2300, it will typically fall on January 15. This slow drift is the only calendar complication for the festival — unlike lunar festivals, which shift within a multi-week window each year, Makar Sankranti is essentially fixed, which is why future-year tables are simpler.

Solar event: the day the sun enters Capricorn (Makara) per sidereal solar calendar; usually January 14, occasionally January 15

Traveling for Makar Sankranti? Where to Go

Makar Sankranti draws enormous crowds to specific destinations. The most famous is the Kumbh Mela, the largest religious gathering on Earth, which is timed to astrologically significant dates including Makar Sankranti — though the Kumbh itself occurs only every 12 years at each of its four sites (Prayagraj, Haridwar, Nashik, Ujjain). Even in non-Kumbh years, the sangam at Prayagraj draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims for ritual bathing on Makar Sankranti. In Gujarat, the International Kite Festival in Ahmedabad draws international visitors. In Tamil Nadu, Pongal is a major family-reunion period, with Chennai seeing heavy outbound travel to home towns. Top destinations for this holiday: Ahmedabad: — A popular destination with significant celebrations and cultural events. Haridwar: — A popular destination with significant celebrations and cultural events. Allahabad (Prayagraj): — A popular destination with significant celebrations and cultural events. Madurai: — A popular destination with significant celebrations and cultural events. Chandigarh: — A popular destination with significant celebrations and cultural events. If you're planning to travel for makar sankranti, compare hotel rates and book early — accommodations in Ahmedabad fill up weeks before the festival. [Search hotels for Makar Sankranti travel →]

Did You Know? Makar Sankranti Facts & Trivia

Makar Sankranti is one of the few Hindu festivals calculated by the sun's position rather than the moon's phase. The festival marks the sun's transition into the zodiac sign of Capricorn (Makara), which signals the beginning of the sun's northward journey (Uttarayana) and the end of the winter solstice period. The festival is celebrated under different names across India: Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Lohri in Punjab, Uttarayan in Gujarat, Magh Bihu in Assam, and Makar Sankranti in the north and west. The common theme is the welcoming of longer days and the harvesting of the new crop. The International Kite Festival in Ahmedabad — held annually on January 14 — draws kite-flyers from around the world. The skies over Ahmedabad fill with millions of kites from dawn to dusk, with kite-fighting competitions using glass-coated strings (manja) to cut opponents' kites. Makar Sankranti is the only Hindu festival that falls on a fixed Gregorian date (January 14, occasionally January 15 in leap years). The festival was originally celebrated on the winter solstice (December 21) thousands of years ago, but has drifted to January 14 due to the slow precession of the equinoxes.