The government has done away with the extra time off and made the day of the festival the only holiday, upending some of the travel and work arrangements people had in mind. A new notification puts the date as May 28, 2026, and makes a point of putting May 26 and 27 back on the docket as working days.
What’s different with the holidays
According to the Finance Department, Thursday, May 28, 2026, is a public holiday for Id-Ud-Zoha (Bakrid) by virtue of Section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.
But in that same order, any holidays you may have had pencilled in for the 26th and 27th are off the table. Those are now working days for every office and institution the notification covers.
The court’s take on the curbs
The Calcutta high court on Thursday saw no reason to tinker with the state’s move to put a lid on the slaughter of bulls, bullocks, cows, calves and buffaloes before the Eid. Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen, in a division bench, made it clear the order was consistent with what they’ve put in place before.
They also put on record the Supreme Court’s view: that killing a cow is not some indispensable rite of Id-Uz-Zuha or a must-do in Islam.
Looking at the certificate process
Even as they let the curbs stand, the bench left open the possibility for the state to check if there is a proper way to be handing out the required certificates under the Act and Rules.
Rules on the ground and how they’re being felt
There has been no let-up in the enforcement of the 1950 Slaughter Control Act this year. The line is drawn at 14 years of age for an animal, and you need a joint certificate to go through with it.
That means you have to get sign-off from the municipality chairman or panchayat sabhapati, as well as a vet from the government to vouch for the animal being “fit”.
It shows in the market in Kolkata. Word is, the price of beef has more than doubled, going from about Rs 280 a kg to close to Rs 600 since the guidelines were put in place.
Reason for the change
The state has been told that Bakrid will be on the 28th, so the calendar has been put right. The two-day break we had before was a thing of the old Mamata Banerjee regime.
Now the BJP, having come to power, has seen fit to make it a single day’s break so the rest of the week can be put to use as normal.
A look at the dates
Here is what you should be aware of:
– May 26, 2026: Back to work
– May 27, 2026: Back to work
– May 28, 2026: The day for Bakrid
This holds for all the offices and institutions in the loop. It’s up to staff and management to rework their rotas and leave to suit the new schedule.
For the moment, the law on slaughter is what it is. The high court won’t be stepping in, so the present rules are in effect while the state mulls over the certification side of things the bench mentioned.
As we get closer to the festival, the message from the top is unambiguous: one holiday on May 28 to mark the occasion, and a firm hand on the slaughter regulations.
