Dry Days in India: Check Full List of Dry Days in 2020 Calendar With Dates When Alcohol Will Not Be Available for Sale in Bars, Pubs and Liquor Shops
Tentatively, there are 24 days that will be declared as Dry Days in 2020. July had no Dry Days and upcoming months of September and December will have no Dry Days as well (as of now, there are no Dry Days). Raise a toast to that piece of good news!
List of Dry Day Dates of 2020 in India:“Beer and Rum, Ta Ra Ra Ra Rum TaRaRumPum”. Excuse me for our over-creativity for it’s time to check out an important calendar, and no, it’s not the holiday calendar. We are talking about the list of Dry Days of 2020 in India. Just like every year, under Alcohol Laws of India, there are specific days in a year when the sale of alcohol is prohibited. And in that case, one needs to stock up well in advance. Although, we are done with half the year, significantly being indoors, but since we enter unlock phase, restrictions are likely to be minimal in the upcoming months amid the pandemic. Let’s quickly see how many days in 2020 are declared as Dry Days. We bring you a complete Dry Days 2020 calendar with dates when alcohol will not be available for sale in bars, pubs and liquor shops in India. But first, let’s check the definition of Dry Days.
According to Wikipedia, “Dry days are specific days when the sale of alcohol is not permitted. Most of the Indian states observe these days on major national festivals/occasions such as Republic Day (January 26), Independence Day (August 15) and Gandhi Jayanti (October 2). Dry days are also observed during elections in India.” Certain days are declared as Dry Days pan India; however, few additional ones may be applicable in few specific states and union territories. Now, that we understand the meaning and relevance of Dry Days, let us know about the days that are going to fall under ‘No Alcohol’ days in 2020.
In January 2020, there were three Dry Days – Makar Sankranti (January 15), Republic Day (January 26) and Mahatma Gandhi Punyatithi or Death Anniversary (January 30). February too had three days observed as Dry Days. They were Swami Dayanand Saraswati Jayanti (February 18), Chhatrapati Shivaji Jayanti (February 19). Holi 2020 on March 10 was not a dry day across India, but in a few states, liquor shops were shut. The fourth month of the year, April 2020 had three days as Dry Days. However, the nationwide lockdowm, forced bars and alcohol shops to remain shut in a bid to contain the spread. It continued for several months, until recently, when most of state governments decided to open wine shops, keeping a time frame in mind.
We are at the second half of the year and since the nation is in an unlock phase, eventually, restrictions are expected to be minimal. August 2020 could be the least favourite month for all the beer-guzzling friends out there as there are as many as four Dry Days in the month. Krishna Janmashtami (August 11) and Independence Day (August 15), are Dry Days. Again, the upcoming events of Ganesh Chaturthi (August 22) and Muharram (August 29) are also Dry Days. September 2020 has Zero Dry Days. In October 2020, there are three Dry Days again - Gandhi Jayanti (October 2), Dussehra (October 25) and Valmiki Jayanti (October 31). November 2020 has two Dry Days, Kartik Ekadashi (November 25) and Guru Nanak Jayanti (November 30). The 12th and last month of the year has no Dry Days.
List of Dry Day Dates of 2020 in India
January 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | January 15 | Wednesday | Makar Sankranti |
| 2. | January 26 | Sunday | Republic Day |
| 3. | January 30 | Thursday | Mahatma Gandhi’s Death Anniversary |
February 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | February 18 | Tuesday | Swami Dayanand Saraswati Jayanti |
| 2. | February 19 | Wednesday | Chhatrapati Shivaji Jayanti |
| 3. | February 21 | Friday | Maha Shivaratri |
March 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | March 10 | Tuesday | Holi (It is not a dry day across India. In a few states liquor shops will be shut). |
April 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | April 2 | Thursday | Rama Navami |
| 2. | April 6 | Monday | Mahavir Jayanti |
| 3. | April 10 | Friday | Good Friday |
May 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | May 1 | Friday | Maharashtra Day (Only in Maharashtra) |
| 2. | May 7 | Thursday | Buddha Purnima |
| 3. | May 24 | Sunday | Eid al-Fitr |
June 2020 – No Dry Day
July 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | July 1 | Wednesday | Ashadi Ekadashi |
| 2. | July 30-31 | Thu-Fri | Eid al-Adha |
August 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | August 11 | Tuesday | Janmashtami |
| 2. | August 15 | Saturday | Independence Day |
| 3. | August 22 | Saturday | Ganesh Chaturthi |
| 4. | August 29 | Saturday | Muharram |
September 2020 – No Dry Day
October 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | October 2 | Friday | Gandhi Jayanti |
| 2. | October 25 | Sunday | Dussehra |
| 3. | October 31 | Saturday | Valmiki Jayanti |
November 2020
| Sr. No. | Date | Day | Festivals/Events |
| 1. | November 25 | Wednesday | Kartik Ekadashi |
| 2. | November 30 | Monday | Guru Nanak Jayanti |
December 2020 – No Dry Day
Tentatively, there are 24 days as Dry Days in 2020. Of course, it does not include legislative assembly elections of Delhi and Bihar, which took place in January-February and upcoming elections in October-November respectively. July had no Dry Days and upcoming months of September and December will have no Dry Days as well (as of now, there are no Dry Days). Raise a toast to that piece of good news!
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 15, 2020 11:58 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).