Paid Leave Announced: Big news for everyone. Tomorrow, February 7th, has been announced as a paid holiday in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. This decision mainly affects the districts and regions in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra where local body elections or by-elections are taking place tomorrow. In Maharashtra, this holiday will also be observed on February 7th, 2026, in 12 designated districts. The Maharashtra government made this decision considering the Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections.
What will be closed?
All educational institutions in those areas will be closed tomorrow. Bank branches in the respective regions will also be shut down. Tomorrow will be a dry day in the polling areas, meaning that liquor shops will stay closed until the evening. There are directives to close their offices during the voting period.
What will remain open?
Hospitals, ambulances, and pharmacies will be fully operational. Buses and metro services (like the Delhi-Ghaziabad Metro) will continue to run, although there may be traffic diversions near polling stations. Milk, fruit, vegetable, and ration shops might stay open, but some shopkeepers could temporarily close their shutters for voting. Even if you reside in Ghaziabad or Noida and commute to Delhi or another city for work, you can request a day off tomorrow by presenting your ‘Voter ID’ to your employer, as it is your legal right to receive paid leave to vote.
Will there be a holiday in 12 districts of Maharashtra?
If you live or work in these districts, you will be entitled to paid leave:
Konkan region: Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg.
Western Maharashtra: Pune, Satara, Sangli, Solapur, Kolhapur.
Marathwada: Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad), Parbhani, Dharashiv (Osmanabad), Latur.
What will remain open and what will remain closed in Maharashtra?
All government offices, private companies, IT parks, shopping malls, showrooms, and factories will remain closed in these 12 districts. All commercial establishments, shops, hotels, and theaters will remain closed to allow employees to vote. Bank branches will also remain closed in these districts. Essential services such as hospitals, medical stores, milk supplies, and the fire brigade will remain fully operational.
The Maharashtra government’s Industries and Labor Department has clearly stated that private companies must provide paid leave to their employees. Failure to provide paid leave could result in action against any company. This is a paid holiday, meaning no money will be deducted from your salary. Where a full day of work is not possible due to technical reasons, such as some emergency plants, employees are required to be given at least 2 to 3 hours of concession time to vote.
Sweta Mitra
Working in the media for last 7 years. The journey started in the year 2018. For the past few years, my working experience has been in Bengali media. Currently working at Timesbull.com. Here I write like Business, National, and Utility News. My favorite hobbies are listening to music, traveling, food,...
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