Gujarat Day 2027

About Gujarat Day

Gujarat Day, or Gujarat Sthapana Divas, marks the day Gujarat became a separate state, 1 May 1960, when the old Bombay State was split into Gujarat and Maharashtra. It is marked by the Gujarat government, by Gujaratis across India and by the large Gujarati community abroad. In 2027 it falls on Saturday, 1 May 2027.

Gujarat Day is a state birthday, not a religious festival. There is no puja, fast or special dish tied to it. What it has is a story: a students' protest in Ahmedabad, a long campaign for a Gujarati-speaking state, and a Gandhian elder cutting the ribbon at Sabarmati Ashram in 1960. Knowing that story is what turns a forwarded graphic into a real wish.

How Gujarat became a state

After independence, Gujarati and Marathi speakers lived in one large Bombay State. On 1 November 1956 the States Reorganisation Act made it even bigger, adding Saurashtra and Kutch on the Gujarati side and Marathwada and Vidarbha on the Marathi side. People called it the *Maha Dwibhashi Rajya*, the great bilingual state. Many in both regions wanted their own state instead.

In Gujarat the turning point came that August. On 8 August 1956, college students in Ahmedabad went to the Congress House near Lal Darwaja to press for a separate state. The Chief Minister of Bombay State, Morarji Desai, did not meet them, and police firing killed several students. Accounts give the toll as between five and eight.

The deaths pulled Indulal Yagnik, known as Indu Chacha, out of political retirement. He founded the Mahagujarat Janata Parishad to lead what became the Mahagujarat movement, and was jailed with other leaders for months. When Morarji Desai went on a week-long fast, Ahmedabad answered by staying indoors in a self-imposed "Janata Curfew". In 1957 Yagnik won the Ahmedabad Lok Sabha seat as the Parishad's candidate and held it until his death in 1972.

The Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960, settled the matter. Bombay city went to Maharashtra and the Dang district went to Gujarat. Both new states came into being on 1 May 1960, which is why Maharashtra Day falls on the same date.

1. 8 August 1956
   Police firing in Ahmedabad

   Students demanding a Gujarati state are killed near Congress House, Lal Darwaja.

2. 1956
   Mahagujarat Janata Parishad

   Indulal Yagnik forms the body that leads the movement.

3. 1 November 1956
   Bilingual Bombay State

   Saurashtra, Kutch, Marathwada and Vidarbha are merged into one state.

4. 1960
   Bombay Reorganisation Act

   Parliament splits the state; Bombay city to Maharashtra, Dang to Gujarat.

5. 1 May 1960
   Gujarat is born

   Ravishankar Maharaj inaugurates the state at Sabarmati Ashram; Jivraj Mehta becomes the first Chief Minister.

6. 1970
   New capital

   Government moves from Ahmedabad to the planned city of Gandhinagar.

7. 2011
   State song

   Narmad's poem "Jay Jay Garavi Gujarat" becomes Gujarat's official song.

The people Gujarat remembers on 1 May

The students of 1956. A memorial known as Shahid Smarak stands near the Lal Darwaja bus stop in Bhadra, Ahmedabad, close to where they fell. It shows a young man holding a torch. If you are in the old city on Gujarat Day, it is a quiet place to stop.

Ravishankar Maharaj. Ravishankar Vyas (1884–1984) was one of Gandhi's earliest associates in Gujarat, jailed during the Salt Satyagraha and later a walker in Vinoba Bhave's Bhoodan movement. On 1 May 1960 he inaugurated the new state under the neem tree at Sabarmati Ashram. The state's social justice department still gives an award in his name.

Indulal Yagnik. His statue stands in a small garden at the east end of Nehru Bridge in Ahmedabad.

Gujarat's first capital was Ahmedabad. Gandhinagar, a planned city named after Mahatma Gandhi and laid out by architects H.K. Mewada and Prakash Apte, took over in 1970.

How Gujarat Day is marked today

The Gujarat government calls the day Gujarat Gaurav Divas (or Gaurav Din), "Gujarat Pride Day", in its own programmes, alongside the older Gujarat Sthapana Divas. The main state function is not fixed to Gandhinagar. It moves around the state: Vyara in Tapi district hosted it in 2015, Godhra in Panchmahal in 2025, and Surat in 2026. The Governor and Chief Minister attend a police parade with tableaux, development projects worth crores are opened, and the Gujarat Garima Awards go to people who have served the state. An evening cultural show follows.

Outside the official event, the day is low-key. Government buildings in the host city are lit up, and social media fills with "Jay Jay Garavi Gujarat". The Prime Minister and other leaders post greetings. In recent years 1 May has not been on the Gujarat government's own list of public holidays, and the RBI's holiday list usually keeps banks in Gujarat open, unlike in Maharashtra. Check your office calendar before assuming a day off.

The same date is Labour Day across much of India, so unions and some workplaces in Gujarat mark it as a workers' day too.

What to write on Gujarat Day

Most Gujarat Day wishes go one of three ways: to family back home, to Gujaratis living elsewhere, or to a Gujarati friend or colleague from someone outside the state. The best ones name something real: a town, a food, a memory, the language.

• To family in Gujarat: write in Gujarati if you can, even one line. *Gujarat Sthapana Divas ni hardik shubhechha* (heartfelt wishes on Gujarat's foundation day) is the standard greeting.
• To Gujaratis abroad: Gujaratis have deep roots in East Africa, Britain, North America and the Gulf. For someone in Leicester, Nairobi or New Jersey, the day is about home. Mention what they miss, and keep it warm, not boastful.
• To a colleague: keep it short. If your office has people from both states, wish Gujarat and Maharashtra together.
• What to avoid: political slogans, comparisons with other states, and jokes about Gujaratis and money or business. These sour a message fast, especially in a work group.

Sthapana Divas

Foundation day; the day a state or institution was set up.

Hardik shubhechha

Heartfelt good wishes; the usual way to greet someone on an occasion in Gujarati.

Gaurav

Pride or glory; the government's name for the day is Gujarat Gaurav Divas.

Garavi

Proud, glorious; from Narmad's line "Jay Jay Garavi Gujarat".

Mahagujarat

"Greater Gujarat"; the name of the 1956–1960 movement for a Gujarati-speaking state.

Amdavad

The everyday Gujarati name for Ahmedabad.

You can see other state days and festivals for the year on the calendar.

How to wish someone on Gujarat Day

A good Gujarat Day wish is about pride in a place and its people, not a festival. Mention the home town, the language, the mangoes or the food someone misses abroad, or the students who died for statehood in 1956. A Gujarati line such as "Gujarat Sthapana Divas ni hardik shubhechha" lands well. Since 1 May is also Maharashtra Day and Labour Day, a message to a mixed office can cover all three.

Write a few lines in your own words, pick a design and share it as one link on WhatsApp, Instagram or anywhere else. They open an animated card made just for them, with no app and no sign-up.

Language tip: English, Gujarati.

When is Gujarat Day in 2026 and 2027?

Gujarat Day is on 1 May every year. Only the weekday changes.

• 2026Friday 1 May
• 2027Saturday 1 May

Frequently asked questions