When is the Birthday of Panchanan Barma?
The Birthday of Panchanan Barma is a regional state holiday in West Bengal. It is observed on the February 13th or 14th each year.
History of Birthday of Panchanan Barma
Panchanan Barma, also known as Thakur Panchanan or Panchanan Sarkar, was a Rajbanshi leader and social reformer from Cooch Behar, West Bengal, India. He dedicated his life to improving lower-class people, specifically for his own lower Rajbanshi community.
The birth anniversary of noted social reformer Panchanan Barma (1866-1935) falls on February 13th. Barma's birthday date is set per the Bengali calendar, poila phagun (the first day of Spring). The Bengali date follows the lunar calendar and depends on the lunar cycle, so the birth date sometimes falls on February 13th and sometimes on the 14th.
About 10 per cent of West Bengal’s 100 million population speak Rajbangshi and they are spread over five districts of north Bengal.
The West Bengal government first honoured the Rajbangshi reformer with a holiday in 2022, though since 2020 Mamata had been promising the same to the community. In 2012, the TMC had named a university after him.
