Bengali New Year 2024: Poila Baisakh Date, History, Significance, Rituals and Facts

Poila Baisakh or the Bengali New Year marks the start of the Baisakh month, according to the Hindu calendar. The day symbolises the start of the New Year for the Hindu Bengalis. The occasion is also known as Noboborsho. It is celebrated with great joy among the Bengali community. It is a common festival among the Bengalis of Assam, Tripura, Bangladesh and West Bengal. This year the auspicious day will be celebrated on April 14.

Poila Baisakh 2024 Date

The auspicious day is celebrated every year on the first day of Baisakh month. This year, the day will be celebrated on April 14.

Poila Baisakh History

The origin of the Bengali Calendar came from the 7th-century king, Shashanka. However, it is said that due to the taxation system of Mughal Emperor Akbar, the calendar was later modified. Earlier taxes were collected in accordance with the lunar Islamic Hijri calendar. As the date of the tax collection didn’t match with the harvest season of Bengal, Akbar made an effort to merge the Bengali Calendar along with the Islamic calendar making it easy for land owners to pay the taxes.

Poila Baisakh Significance

Poila Baisakh is an important festival for the Bengali community. It marks the start of the new financial year. On the occasion of this auspicious day, devotees visit temples in the morning to seek blessings. The day is observed as the beginning of the new accounting year by the business owners. Farmers pray to god as the day marks the beginning of the new harvest season.

Rituals and Facts

1. The day starts with people visiting the temples to seek blessings from god for a prosperous year.
2. Bengali business owners mark this day as the start of a new accounts book called ‘Haal Khata.’
3. Special puja of lord ‘Ganesh’ and ‘Laxmi’ is performed for a prosperous business year.
4. The houses are decorated with garlands, alpanas to welcome the start of the New Year.
5. The occasion is said to be incomplete without delicious cuisines.
6. People often prepare authentic Bengali dishes like Shukto, Cholar Dal, Shorshe Ilish, to make the day extra special.
7. Wearing new clothes is considered sacred by the Bengalis on that day.
8. People spend time with their families, visit houses of friends and invite relatives for dinner.