This US State follows Pennsylvania in designating Diwali as a school holiday for its 2 lakh Indian residents

A measure to make Diwali a holiday for schools was enacted in New York City after Pennsylvania. The measure to declare the Indian festival a holiday in the city was approved by the New York State Legislature last week.

The legislation is with Governor Kathy Hochul, who must sign it into law. For the more than 2 lakh New Yorkers who celebrate Diwali, Mayor Eric Adams will be able to declare it a school holiday if the bill is approved.

The New York Assembly and Senate both approved the measure for passage. The law has previously been proposed twice, failing the first time in 2021 and the second time in October 2022, according to The Times of India.

As the historic measure was being passed, Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar said that it had “fulfilled the dream of the South Asian community.”

Even though the White House and the US Capitol host celebrations of Diwali, the festival has not yet been proclaimed a national holiday.

Pennsylvania became the first US state to formally recognize Diwali as a public holiday earlier this year. The festival of lights has not yet been recognized as a national holiday in the rest of the US.

Before other states with large Indian-American populations, such as California, Texas, Illinois, New York, and New Jersey, Pennsylvania was the first to celebrate Diwali.

A measure to make Diwali a government holiday was also submitted in the US Congress last month by famous American congressman Graced Meng.

Diwali is one of the most significant days of the year for countless families and communities in Queens, New York, and the United States, as well as for billions of people around the world, said Congresswoman Graced Meng during a virtual news conference here shortly after introducing the bill in the House of Representatives.

The festival would become the 12th nationally recognized holiday in the US if the Diwali Day Act were to be approved by the Congress and signed into law by the President.

Ranjeev Puri, a state legislator from Michigan whose parents immigrated from Punjab. A measure to recognize Diwali, Vaishakhi, Eid ul-Fitr, Eid ul-Adha, and Lunar New Year as official holidays in the US state was also presented last week.