TRADITIONAL NEW YEAR FESTIVALS IN INDIA

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• The President of India has greeted people on the eve of Chaitra Shukladi, GudiPadwa, Ugadi, Cheti Chand, Vaisakhi, Vishu, NabaBarsha, Vaisakhadi and Puthandu-Pirappu and Bohag Bihu.
• These festivals of the spring season mark the beginning of the traditional new year in India.

Vaishakhi:

• It is also pronounced as Baisakhi, observed by Hindus and Sikhs.
• It marks the beginning of Hindu Solar New year.
• It commemorates the formation of Khalsapanth of warriors under Guru Gobind Singh in 1699.
• Baisakhi was also the day when colonial British empire officials committed the JallianwalaBagh massacre at a gathering, an event influential to the Indian movement against colonial rule.

Vishu:

• It is a Hindu festival celebrated in the Indian state of Kerala, Tulu Nadu region in Karnataka, Mahé district of Union Territory of Pondicherry, neighbouring areas of Tamil Nadu and their diaspora communities.
• The festival marks the first day of Medam, the ninth month in the solar calendar in Kerala.
• It therefore always falls in the middle of April in the Gregorian calendar on 14th or 15th April every year.

Puthandu:

• Also known as Puthuvarudam or Tamil New Year, is the first day of the year on the Tamil calendar and traditionally celebrated as a festival.
• The festival date is set with the solar cycle of the lunisolar Hindu calendar, as the first day of the Tamil month Chithirai.
• It therefore falls on or about 14th April every year on the Gregorian calendar.

Bohag Bihu:

• Bohag Bihu or Rongali Bihu also called Xaat Bihu (seven Bihus) is a traditional aboriginal ethnic festival celebrated in the state of Assam and other parts of northeastern India by the indigenous ethnic groups of Assam.
• It marks the beginning of the Assamese New Year.
• It usually falls in the 2nd week of April, historically signifying the time of harvest. 

NabaBarsha:

• NabaBarsha is the celebration of the new year in West Bengal as per the Bengali Calendar.
• It is also popularly known as the PoilaBaisakh which literally translates to first Baisakhi (a month in the lunisolar calendar of the Bengalis).
• The people of Bengal come together and celebrate this new year in their own way by making it loud and magical like every other Bengali festival.
• The festival is celebrated by all castes and religions all across Bengal.
• After Durga Pooja, this is the second most hyped festival in Bengal, this festival connects the people of Bengal, especially the Bengalis who are originally Hindu.

SOURCE: THE HINDU,THE ECONOMIC TIMES,MINT