Banks usually close on Sundays and the second and fourth Saturdays of each month, but the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has directed all agency banks that process government transactions to keep their offices open on the last day of the current fiscal year (2023-24), Sunday, March 31, 2024.

The idea comes as the last day of the fiscal year (FY) 2023-24 occurs on a Sunday, causing possible complications for government financial operations.

In an official statement, the RBI, “The Government of India has made a request to keep all branches of the banks dealing with Government receipts and payments open for transactions on March 31, 2024 (Sunday) to account for all the Government transactions relating to receipts and payments in the FY2023-24 itself”

The mandate applies to all agency banks and requires them to guarantee banking services are provided across branches dealing with government transactions by March 31, 2024. Furthermore, banks are directed to actively tell the public about the availability of services on this special operational day.

The Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, and Canara Bank are among the public-sector banks (PSBs) that have been designated as RBI agency banks. Similarly, private banks such as Axis Bank Ltd and HDFC Bank Ltd are dedicated to fulfilling the RBI’s mandate regarding agency banking activities.

The Income Tax Department recently announced the elimination of the long weekend from March 29 to March 31, 2024. This decision was taken owing to outstanding tax-related tasks. March 29 is Good Friday, a holiday; March 30 is Saturday, and March 31 is Sunday.

“To facilitate completion of pending departmental work, all Income Tax Offices throughout India shall remain open on the 29th, 30th, and 31st of March 2024,” stated the Income-tax Department in an order dated March 31, 2024.