Makar Sankranti 2027: Date, Punya Kaal Timings City-Wise, Bhogi, Pongal, Kanuma, Lohri and Uttarayan

Quick answer: Makar Sankranti 2027 is on Friday 15 January 2027 in India. The Sun enters Makara rashi (Capricorn) at 9:14 PM IST on Thursday 14 January. Because this is after sunset, the Punya Kaal, the holy period for bathing, prayer and charity, falls on Friday morning. In Hyderabad the Maha Punya Kaal is 6:49 AM to 8:41 AM.

In the Telugu states this is the three-day Pedda Panduga (the big festival): Bhogi on Thursday 14 January, Sankranti on Friday 15 January and Kanuma on Saturday 16 January. Tamil Nadu celebrates Thai Pongal on the same Friday. Punjab lights the Lohri bonfire on Thursday evening, and Gujarat flies kites for Uttarayan on Friday.

Published: 21 October 2026. We will update this page in place as January comes closer.

Makar Sankranti 2027 date and Sankranti moment

Source: Drik Panchang, Makar Sankranti 2027, Hyderabad and Drik Panchang, New Delhi, checked 21 October 2026. The Sankranti moment is the same instant everywhere in India; only sunrise and sunset, and so the Punya Kaal, change from city to city.

Makar Sankranti 2027 Punya Kaal in Indian cities

All times are IST on Friday 15 January 2027. The Punya Kaal starts at local sunrise because the Sankranti moment was the night before. The Maha Punya Kaal is the first, most auspicious part of it.

Source: Drik Panchang city pages for Makar Sankranti 2027, checked 21 October 2026.

Makar Sankranti 2027 date and timings abroad

Outside India, the Sankranti moment falls at a different local clock time. Where it happens during the day, the Punya Kaal starts at that moment and runs to sunset on the same day. That is why North America, the UK, the Caribbean and South Africa keep the festival on Thursday 14 January, while the Gulf, South-East Asia, Australia and the Pacific keep it on Friday 15 January. All times below are local.

Source: Drik Panchang Makar Sankranti 2027 pages for each city (for example New York), checked 21 October 2026. Winnipeg: Manitoba stays on UTC−5 all year from November 2026, but Drik still shows Winnipeg on UTC−6, so we added one hour to Drik's Winnipeg times. Calgary (UTC−6) and Vancouver (UTC−7) are as Drik shows them.

In London the Sun enters Makara only 35 minutes before sunset, so the Punya Kaal on Thursday is very short. Some families in the UK prefer to do their Sankranti puja on Friday morning with India. Temples abroad often hold the main Pongal or Sankranti celebration on the weekend of 16 and 17 January 2027. Follow your temple's announcement.

The festival days around Sankranti in 2027

Source: Drik Panchang festival pages for Bhogi Pandigai and Thai Pongal (Chennai), Kanuma and Mukkanuma (Hyderabad), Lohri (New Delhi), Uttarayana (Ahmedabad) and Magh Bihu (Guwahati), checked 21 October 2026.

Why Makar Sankranti matters

Sankranti means the Sun's move from one rashi (zodiac sign) to the next. There are twelve each year, but Makara Sankranti, the entry into Capricorn, is the most celebrated. It marks the start of the Sun's northward half of the year, Uttarayana, which the scriptures call the bright and auspicious half. In the Mahabharata, Bhishma waits on his bed of arrows for Uttarayana before leaving his body.

Unlike most Hindu festivals, which follow the Moon, Sankranti follows the Sun. That is why it almost always falls on 14 or 15 January. The astronomical winter solstice is in late December; the Hindu sidereal zodiac places the Sun's entry into Makara about three weeks later.

It is also a harvest festival. In much of India the winter crop has just been gathered, and families thank the Sun, the land and the cattle that made the harvest possible.

How Sankranti is celebrated across India

Andhra Pradesh and Telangana: Pedda Panduga

On Bhogi morning families light a bonfire before dawn and throw old things into it, a sign of letting go of the past. In the evening small children are showered with Bhogi pallu (regi fruit, flowers and coins) for blessings. On Sankranti day homes are decorated with large muggulu (rangoli) and gobbemmalu (cow-dung balls topped with flowers), and Haridasu singers and Gangireddu (decorated bulls) go from house to house. Kites fill the sky in Hyderabad. Kanuma is the day for honouring cattle, and many families eat a non-vegetarian feast.

For more, read our Kanuma festival guide.

Tamil Nadu: Pongal

Bhogi Pandigai clears out the old. On Thai Pongal day, the first day of the Tamil month Thai, families boil new rice with milk and jaggery in a new pot, often outdoors facing the Sun, and call out 'Pongalo Pongal' as it boils over, a sign of plenty. Mattu Pongal honours the cows and bulls, and Kaanum Pongal is for visiting family and outings. See our Pongal celebrations guide and the Sakkarai Pongal recipe.

Punjab: Lohri

On the evening before Sankranti, families and neighbours gather around a bonfire, offer sesame, peanuts, popcorn and rewri into the fire, and sing and dance. Homes with a new baby or a new marriage celebrate their first Lohri with special joy. The next day, Maghi, many Punjabi families visit the gurdwara or temple. Read more in our Lohri bonfire rituals guide.

Gujarat and Rajasthan: Uttarayan

Rooftops fill with kite flyers from dawn to dusk, and many Gujarati families continue the next day as Vasi Uttarayan. Undhiyu, chikki and til laddoos are the foods of the day. Please use cotton thread: nylon and synthetic 'Chinese manja' was banned nationwide by the National Green Tribunal in 2017 because it injures birds, riders and pedestrians.

Maharashtra and Karnataka: til-gul and ellu-bella

In Maharashtra people exchange til-gul (sesame and jaggery) saying 'til-gul ghya, god god bola', meaning 'take this sweet and speak sweetly'. Married women hold haldi-kunku gatherings. In Karnataka, families share ellu-bella (sesame, jaggery, coconut and peanuts) with sugarcane, a custom called ellu birodu.

Bengal, Assam, Kerala and the north

• West Bengal: Poush Sankranti, with pithe sweets made from new rice and date-palm jaggery. Pilgrims gather for the Gangasagar Mela on Sagar Island, where the Ganga meets the sea.
• Assam: Magh Bihu. The night before (Uruka) is a community feast around temporary huts (bhelaghar), which are burned in the meji bonfire the next morning.
• Kerala: Makaravilakku at Sabarimala is held on Makara Sankranti. See our Sabarimala 2026-27 season guide and check the Travancore Devaswom Board's schedule before you travel.
• Uttar Pradesh and Bihar: Khichdi Parv, with a holy dip, khichdi made from new rice and urad dal, and dahi-chura. Makar Sankranti is one of the main bathing days of the Magh Mela at Prayagraj.

Makar Sankranti puja vidhi at home

Customs vary by family. A simple, widely followed method:

1. Wake before sunrise, clean the house and draw a rangoli or muggu at the entrance.
2. Take a bath. Some add a few sesame seeds to the bath water. Wear clean or new clothes.
3. During the Punya Kaal, ideally the Maha Punya Kaal, offer arghya to the Sun: pour water from a copper or steel vessel with red flowers, akshata (rice) and a little sesame, facing the rising Sun.
4. Light a ghee lamp and incense before a picture of Surya or your family deity. Offer til-jaggery sweets, new rice (pongal or khichdi) and sugarcane.
5. Recite a Surya prayer (below) or the Aditya Hridayam, or simply chant 'Om Suryaya Namah' 12 times.
6. Give daan (charity): sesame, jaggery, rice and dal, blankets or warm clothes, to people who need them.
7. Share the festival meal with family and neighbours.

A Surya prayer for Sankranti

This verse from the Aditya Hridayam (Valmiki Ramayana, Yuddha Kanda), in which the sage Agastya tells Rama to worship the rising Sun, is fitting for the Sankranti morning:

रश्मिमन्तं समुद्यन्तं देवासुरनमस्कृतम् ।
पूजयस्व विवस्वन्तं भास्करं भुवनेश्वरम् ॥ ६॥

raśmimantaṃ samudyantaṃ devāsuranamaskṛtam |
pūjayasva vivasvantaṃ bhāskaraṃ bhuvaneśvaram || 6||

Meaning (our summary): Worship Vivasvan, the Sun, full of rays, rising, honoured by gods and asuras alike, the maker of light and lord of the worlds. Read all the verses in our Aditya Hridayam guide, or learn the 12 Surya Namaskar mantras.

Daan: what to give

Sesame (til) and jaggery are the classic Sankranti gifts. Khichdi ingredients, food grains, warm clothes and blankets are also traditional because Sankranti falls in midwinter. A donation to a food bank, a homeless shelter or a temple annadanam fund is a good way to keep the custom abroad.

Health and safety

• January river water is very cold. Elderly people, children and anyone with a heart or lung condition should take a short dip only, or bathe at home.
• If you fast until the Punya Kaal, and you are pregnant, diabetic or on regular medicine, speak to a doctor first.
• Fly kites only from rooftops with railings, never near power lines, and use cotton thread.

Sankranti for NRI families

• Use your local date: In the USA, Canada and the UK, Drik gives Thursday 14 January 2027. Do not convert India's Punya Kaal times; use the table above.
• Weekend celebration: Most community Pongal and Sankranti events abroad fall on the nearest weekend. Check your temple or Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Gujarati or Punjabi association for the actual event day.
• Morning prayer before work: Even ten minutes of arghya to the Sun and a lamp before work keeps the spirit of the day. More ideas: Makar Sankranti and Pongal abroad.
• Kids: Make til-gul or pongal together, draw a rangoli with chalk or coloured rice, and tell the story of Bhishma waiting for Uttarayana.

Makar Sankranti 2027 wishes

• Happy Makar Sankranti 2027! May the Sun's journey north bring light, health and new beginnings to your home.
• Til-gul ghya, god god bola! Wishing you a sweet and joyful Sankranti.
• Sankranti subhakankshalu! May Bhogi burn away your worries and Kanuma bring plenty to your home.
• Iniya Pongal nalvazhthukkal! May your home overflow with joy like the Pongal pot.
• Happy Lohri and Makar Sankranti! May the warmth of the bonfire stay with you all year.

Frequently asked questions

When is Makar Sankranti 2027?

Makar Sankranti 2027 is on Friday 15 January 2027 in India, per Drik Panchang. The Sun enters Makara rashi (Capricorn) at 9:14 PM IST on Thursday 14 January. Because that is after sunset, the Punya Kaal and the festival move to Friday.

Why is Makar Sankranti on 15 January in 2027 and not 14 January?

The moment the Sun enters Makara shifts by a few hours each year. When it falls after sunset, the holy period is kept the next morning. In 2027 the moment is 9:14 PM IST on 14 January, so India observes it on 15 January.

What is the Punya Kaal time for Makar Sankranti 2027?

In Hyderabad the Punya Kaal is 6:49 AM to 6:01 PM and the Maha Punya Kaal is 6:49 AM to 8:41 AM on Friday 15 January 2027. In New Delhi it is 7:15 AM to 5:46 PM, with Maha Punya Kaal 7:15 AM to 9:00 AM. The table on this page gives 12 Indian cities.

When is Makar Sankranti 2027 in the USA, Canada and the UK?

In the USA, Canada, the UK, the Caribbean and South Africa, the Sun enters Makara during the daytime of Thursday 14 January local time, so Drik gives Thursday 14 January there. In the UAE, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Fiji and New Zealand it is Friday 15 January. Check your temple for the event day.

When are Bhogi, Kanuma and Mattu Pongal in 2027?

Per Drik Panchang, Bhogi is on Thursday 14 January 2027, Sankranti and Thai Pongal on Friday 15 January, Kanuma and Mattu Pongal on Saturday 16 January, and Mukkanuma and Kaanum Pongal on Sunday 17 January.

When is Lohri 2027?

Lohri 2027 is on Thursday 14 January 2027, the evening before Makar Sankranti, per Drik Panchang for New Delhi.

Editor's note

Editor's note (21 October 2026): All dates and timings are from Drik Panchang's 2027 city and festival pages, checked on 21 October 2026. We added one hour to Drik's Winnipeg times because Manitoba keeps UTC−5 all year from November 2026. We have not listed temple events or venues. Customs vary by region and family. The Sanskrit verse is from the sanskritdocuments.org text of the Aditya Hridayam.

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