Holiday calendar for coaching institutes

A short list of fixed closures

Most institutes close only on Independence Day, Republic Day, Holi, Diwali and one or two regional festivals, such as Durga Puja in Kolkata or Ganesh Chaturthi in Pune, and keep teaching on other public holidays. Decide the list with the academic head and branch managers before the session, because every closure has to be built into the lecture plan of every batch. Announce it to students and staff on the same day, so faculty are never surprised by a holiday that nobody put into the timetable.

Diwali break, session gaps and exam weeks

A Diwali break of three to five days is common, with classes resuming soon after Bhai Dooj. The longer pause comes between sessions: once entrance results are out, many institutes have a quiet fortnight before new batches start, which is the natural time for faculty holidays and planned leave. In the eight weeks before a target exam there should be no closures beyond national holidays, and institutes often add test days on holidays instead.

• Diwali: three to five days for all staff
• Between sessions: faculty holidays and planned leave
• Last eight weeks before the exam: national holidays only
• Other public holidays: classes continue, with comp-off for staff on duty

Holiday duty and optional holidays

When classes run on a public holiday such as Gandhi Jayanti or a state festival, faculty and staff on duty should get comp-off or holiday pay under a written rule. Keep the holiday in the calendar and record attendance against it, rather than quietly turning it into a working day, so the extra day stays visible. Optional holidays help in a mixed team: let each person choose two a year from a list such as Eid ul-Fitr, Christmas, Chhath and Pongal, with the academic head checking the picks against batch schedules.

Branch-wise holiday lists

An institute with branches in Delhi, Jaipur and Patna follows three state lists and three sets of local festivals. Keep national closures common, add state and festival holidays branch by branch, and let faculty who travel between branches follow their home branch list, with any duty on a home branch holiday recorded for comp-off. Content, video and online teams can follow the head office list, since they do not face students.

How to set it up in ZeniaHR

1. In Holiday Calendars, add the fixed closures for the year, such as national holidays, Holi and Diwali, as holidays for all branches.
2. Add state and regional festivals only to the branches that observe them, and keep the head office list for online and content teams.
3. Keep public holidays on which classes still run in the calendar as holidays, so duty on those days shows up for comp-off instead of disappearing.
4. Set up optional holidays with a yearly pick limit, and check the report of who picked which optional holiday against batch schedules.
5. Grant comp-off to faculty and staff who worked a holiday, with an expiry, after checking their punches for the day.
6. Set recurring yearly holidays once, and add the Diwali break dates each year as company holidays.

Read more about holiday calendars in ZeniaHR.

Roles this applies to

Frequently asked questions