If you searched for Govardhan Puja today, you found two different dates — and both looked authoritative. Some calendars say Monday 9 November. Others say Tuesday 10 November. The confusion is real enough that गोवर्धन पूजा is among the top trends on X in India today and a top search on Google Trends India. The good news is that the confusion has a clear explanation, and the answer for most of India is settled: the main morning puja is on Tuesday 10 November, between 6:40 and 8:50 am in Delhi. This guide gives the answer up front, then the muhurat, then the vidhi — and why the two dates exist.
The answer up front
In India, Govardhan Puja 2026 falls on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, according to the Times of India and Drik Panchang. The main morning puja — the Pratahkala muhurat — in Delhi is 6:40–8:50 am on 10 November. Do not do the morning puja on 9 November — Amavasya prevails that morning.
That is the answer for the morning observance that most households in India follow. If your family follows an evening tradition, or your local panchang lists 9 November, read the next two sections before deciding — the evening of 9 November is a real variation, not an error, and it has its own timing.
Why the confusion exists
Govardhan Puja is observed on Kartik Shukla Pratipada, the first day of the bright fortnight of Kartik — the day after Diwali’s Amavasya. This year the tithi does not sit neatly inside one calendar day: Amavasya runs past sunrise on 9 November and ends only at 12:31 pm, when Pratipada begins, and Pratipada continues until 2:00 pm on 10 November.
That single fact explains the two dates. Under the sunrise rule (udaya tithi) — the festival falls on the day the tithi is present at sunrise — Pratipada is present at sunrise only on 10 November, so the festival is 10 November in India. But because Pratipada begins at 12:31 pm on 9 November, calendars that list the festival by the tithi’s start, and panchangs that follow an evening (Sayankala) tradition, list 9 November. Both listings are describing the same tithi; they are applying different rules to it.
Muhurat: Delhi and beyond
The timings below are from Drik Panchang, as reported by the Times of India and the Economic Times, and they are city-specific because they depend on local sunrise. New Delhi, Pratahkala (morning) puja muhurat on Tuesday 10 November: 6:40–8:50 am. Kolkata: 5:46–8:00 am. Mumbai’s morning window on 10 November is 6:43–8:59 am, per Drik-based listings.
Pratipada ends at 2:00 pm on 10 November, so the Annakut offering and all main rituals should be finished well before the early afternoon. The morning window shifts a little with local sunrise, so if you are not in Delhi or Kolkata, check your local panchang rather than using Delhi minutes.
The evening variation: some regional panchangs list an evening muhurat on Monday 9 November — for example, Mumbai 3:46–6:02 pm, per Drik-based listings. These are Sayankala (evening) observances within Pratipada, followed by some families and regions. If your family tradition is the evening puja, that window is the one to use; if your tradition is the morning puja, it is Tuesday 10 November.
Vidhi: how the puja is done
Govardhan Puja remembers the story in which Lord Krishna lifted Govardhan Hill on his little finger to shelter the people of Vrindavan from the rains sent by Indra. The puja enacts that story: a small Govardhan Hill is made — traditionally of cow dung, in many urban homes of clay or a mound of food — and worshipped with flowers, kumkum, diyas and food.
The centre of the ritual is the Annakut, the “mountain of food”: a large offering of cooked food, sweets and fruits arranged in a heap before the deity, offered first to Krishna and then shared as prasad. Devotees also worship cows on this day, and in many homes the puja is followed by a parikrama around the Govardhan mound. The same Pratipada also marks Bali Pratipada in western and southern India, and the start of the new year in the Gujarati calendar.
Practical points: do the main rituals inside your city’s muhurat, finish the Annakut before Pratipada ends at 2:00 pm on Tuesday, and follow your local panchang and temple’s announcement if your family’s custom differs. The muhurat figures here are Drik Panchang figures for the cities named, not a substitute for your local calendar.
The festival chain: what comes next
Govardhan Puja sits in the middle of the five-day Diwali chain: Dhanteras was Friday 6 November, Diwali and Lakshmi Puja were Sunday 8 November (Delhi Vrishabha Kaal 5:54–7:50 pm), Govardhan is Tuesday 10 November, and Bhai Dooj follows Wednesday 11 November (Delhi tilak 1:10–3:20 pm, per Drik Panchang).
That chain is also why the date confusion matters beyond one festival: each day’s tithi determines the next, and a household that does Govardhan Puja on the wrong day throws its Bhai Dooj planning off too. With the chain settled — 10 November for Govardhan, 11 November for Bhai Dooj — the week can be planned with confidence.
Is Govardhan Puja on 9 or 10 November 2026?
In India, the main morning puja is Tuesday 10 November 2026. Pratipada runs from 12:31 pm on 9 Nov to 2:00 pm on 10 Nov, which is why some calendars list 9 November.
What is the Govardhan Puja muhurat in Delhi?
Pratahkala (morning) 6:40–8:50 am on Tuesday 10 November, per Drik Panchang. Kolkata is 5:46–8:00 am. Timings vary by city.
Can Govardhan Puja be done on the evening of 9 November?
Some regional panchangs list an evening (Sayankala) muhurat on 9 November, e.g. Mumbai 3:46–6:02 pm. It is a regional/family variation; the main morning puja in India is 10 November.
What is Annakut?
The “mountain of food” offered during Govardhan Puja — cooked food, sweets and fruits heaped before the deity, offered to Krishna and then shared as prasad.