Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Government on Tuesday announced that August 29, a day after the Nuakhai festival, will be observed as an additional holiday across the state.

According to a notification issued by the Revenue and Disaster Management Department, all government offices along with revenue and magisterial courts will remain closed on August 29 to mark the celebration.

The decision followed a proposal from the department recommending an extra holiday for Nuakhai, the major agrarian festival widely celebrated in western Odisha.

Nuakhai, scheduled on August 28 this year, is already included in the state’s official holiday list. With this decision, August 29 has also been added as an additional holiday for government establishments.

However, to compensate, the government has cancelled the holiday on the second Saturday and declared September 13 as a working day.