Status checked 23 Oct 2026: Punjab and both divisions of Jammu and Kashmir have notified their 2026-27 winter hours. Haryana, Chandigarh and the district-level cold-wave orders are still awaited.
The first winter school timings of the 2026-27 session are already on paper. Punjab’s education department has told every government, aided and private school in the state that from 1 November 2026 the day will start at 9 am instead of 8:30 am. Jammu shifted its clock on 1 October, the Kashmir Valley on 15 October. Over the next eight weeks the rest of north India will follow, first through planned seasonal schedules and later, when the fog rolls in, through short orders that can arrive at 9 pm for the next morning.
This explainer puts both kinds of orders in one place. It lists what has been notified for winter 2026, what each state actually ordered last winter (2025-26) with dates and hours, and who has the power to change your child’s school day. The status table further down will be updated as fresh orders come in.
2 Nov 2026, 9:00 AM | First school day on Punjab winter timings (order applies from Sunday, 1 Nov)
Winter school timings 2026: orders already issued
Punjab and both divisions of Jammu and Kashmir have moved before the cold has properly set in. Rajasthan did the opposite and held back its change because of late heat.
Punjab: 8:30 am in October, 9 am from November
In an order reported on 30 September 2026, the Punjab education department revised school hours for the cooler months. From 1 to 31 October, primary schools run from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm and middle, high and senior secondary schools from 8:30 am to 2:50 pm. From 1 November 2026 to 28 February 2027, primary schools will run from 9 am to 3 pm, and middle to senior secondary schools from 9 am to 3:20 pm, PTC News reported from the order. Before October, schools were working 8 am to 2 pm.
Since 1 November 2026 falls on a Sunday, most children will feel the change on Monday, 2 November. The order covers government, aided and recognised private schools, so a private school in Ludhiana or Mohali is expected to fall in line, not just the government school down the road.
Jammu and Kashmir: two divisions, two dates
The Director of School Education, Jammu, changed timings for the Jammu division from 1 October 2026. Schools in the summer zone now work 9 am to 3 pm, and schools in the winter zone 9:30 am to 3:30 pm. The order applies to all government and recognised private schools up to higher secondary, and the directorate has warned that schools deviating from it will face action, according to the Daily Excelsior.
In the Valley, the Directorate of School Education Kashmir (DSEK) moved its schools to winter hours from 15 October 2026. Within Srinagar municipal limits the day now runs 10 am to 3:30 pm; outside those limits and across the rest of the Kashmir division it is 10:30 am to 4 pm, UNI reported on 14 October. That is a later finish than last year’s November schedule, which closed schools at 3 pm and 3:30 pm. On short October and November afternoons, a 4 pm bell in a rural district means a walk home in fading light.
Rajasthan: the switch was pushed back for heat
Rajasthan normally moves from summer to winter hours on 1 October under its school calendar, the Shivira Panchang. This year it did not. An order from the Directorate of Secondary Education, issued on Wednesday, 30 September 2026, kept the summer schedule of 7:30 am to 1 pm for single-shift schools until 15 October because temperatures in western districts were still touching 40°C, Dainik Bhaskar reported. The same report notes that the change happened on 1 October in 2025, and from 16 October in 2022, 2023 and 2024. The state’s standard winter day for single-shift schools is 10 am to 4 pm, as the 2024 order described by News18 spelt out.
Two kinds of winter orders, and who signs them
Most confusion among parents comes from mixing up two very different orders. Both change the clock, but they come from different offices, last for different periods and can overlap.
The seasonal schedule is planned. A state school education directorate fixes winter hours for months at a stretch, often in the academic calendar itself. Punjab’s November to February timetable, Haryana’s 15 November to 15 February window and Uttar Pradesh’s October to March hours for council schools are all of this type. They are predictable, and a school can print them in its diary in April.
The cold-wave or fog order is reactive. It usually comes from the District Magistrate or Collector, sometimes from the District Basic Education Officer on the DM’s instructions, and it runs for a few days at a time. In Patna last December, the DM used Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, the provision that replaced the old Section 144, to restrict school hours. Jaipur’s administration warned schools that violations would invite action under the Disaster Management Act. These orders typically cover every school in the district, whatever the board.
There is a third layer. When a state minister or chief minister announces a statewide cold-wave change, as Punjab did in January 2026, the education secretary signs the order and District Education Officers carry it out. And in Delhi, winter changes to the school day have lately been driven less by temperature than by air quality, through the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) of the Commission for Air Quality Management.
When both orders exist, which one applies?
The later, more specific order. If Punjab’s winter schedule says 9 am but the state issues a cold-wave order saying 10 am for a week, schools follow 10 am for that week and then return to 9 am. A DM order for one district does not change hours in the next district. That is why two cousins in Lucknow and Barabanki can have different reporting times on the same day.
Last winter’s orders, state by state (2025-26)
Since no state publishes its fog orders in advance, last year’s record is the best guide to what this winter may look like. Here is what each government and district administration actually ordered between October 2025 and February 2026. All dates below are from 2025-26 unless marked otherwise.
Punjab
Punjab works on a fixed yearly cycle. The Tribune’s account of the 2024 order set it out: 8 am to 2 pm from April to September, a half-hour shift in October, and from 1 November to 28 February primary schools at 9 am to 3 pm and upper classes at 9 am to 3:20 pm (The Tribune, 3 November 2024). Last winter the department’s notification again moved schools to a 9 am start from 1 November 2025 and kept it until 28 February 2026 (PTC News, 31 October 2025). That report gave a single 9 am to 3 pm day and did not spell out the 3:20 pm finish for senior classes, which both the 2024 and 2026 schedules carry.
Then the cold took over. Schools were shut for the winter break from 24 December 2025, the break was extended twice, and classes resumed on Wednesday, 14 January 2026. The very next day, an order signed by Education Secretary Anindita Mitra pushed the start to 10 am for all schools from 16 to 21 January: primary 10 am to 3 pm, middle to senior secondary 10 am to 3:20 pm, as The Indian Express reported. From 1 March 2026 the October timing of 8:30 am returned for the month (PTC News).
Haryana
Haryana’s Directorate of Secondary Education changed hours for all government and private schools from 15 November 2025, citing the drop in temperature. Single-shift schools moved to 9:30 am to 3:30 pm. Double-shift schools ran the first shift from 7:55 am to 12:30 pm and the second from 12:40 pm to 5:15 pm. The instructions went to district education officers, block officers and principals, and the timings stayed until 15 February 2026, Dainik Jagran reported on 11 November 2025. Until then, single-shift schools had been working 8 am to 2:30 pm.
The state also gave schools a fixed winter vacation from 1 to 15 January 2026, with classes resuming on 16 January, according to Amar Ujala. The 9:30 am window is the one Haryana has used for several winters now; the 2024 notice had the same single-shift hours.
Chandigarh
The UT Education Department usually acts in short bursts in January. On 13 January 2026 it adjusted timings for the third time that month: no physical classes until 17 January for students up to Class 8 and for the non-board Classes 9 and 11, online classes allowed from 9 am, and Classes 10 and 12 to run from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm. The order covered government, aided and private schools (The Tribune, 13 January 2026).
For a sense of how detailed a Chandigarh order gets when schools do stay open, look at January 2025. For 13 to 18 January that year, single-shift government schools ran 9:30 am to 2:30 pm, double-shift schools ran Class 6 upwards from 9:30 am and Classes 1 to 5 from 12:30 pm to 3:30 pm, pre-primary got a three-hour day from 9:30 am, and private schools could not open before 9:30 am or close after 3:30 pm (The Tribune, 11 January 2025). Pre-board classes were allowed to start at 9 am.
Delhi
Delhi’s Directorate of Education does not run a separate winter clock the way Punjab or Haryana do. What changes in Delhi is the mode of teaching, and the trigger is pollution. On 11 November 2025, after the Centre invoked GRAP Stage III, the DoE told government, aided and recognised private schools under the DoE, NDMC, MCD and Delhi Cantonment Board to run classes up to Class 5 in hybrid mode wherever online teaching was feasible (The Tribune).
Restrictions widened under GRAP Stage IV. When the CAQM withdrew Stage IV by an order dated 24 December 2025, the DoE brought Classes 6 to 9 and 11 back to fully physical classes from Monday, 29 December, with no online option. Nursery to Class 5 stayed hybrid until further orders, and Classes 10 and 12 had been attending in person throughout, India Today reported. The DoE’s 2025-26 calendar then gave winter vacation from 1 to 15 January 2026 (PTI).
Uttar Pradesh
UP’s council-run primary and upper primary schools follow a standing rule: 8 am to 2 pm from 1 April to 30 September, and 9 am to 3 pm from 1 October to 31 March, with the midday meal break from 12 noon to 12:30 pm in winter (Hindustan, October 2023). Unless that rule has since been changed, these schools have been on winter hours since 1 October 2026.
Everything else in UP happens district by district. In mid-December 2025, Lucknow’s administration ordered that no school of any board, Class 1 to 12, would start before 9 am. In Rampur the District Basic Education Officer set 10 am to 3 pm for Classes 1 to 8 (CNBC-TV18). By early January the orders had turned into closures: Gautam Buddh Nagar (Noida) shut schools up to Class 8 until 10 January 2026, and its order named CBSE, ICSE, IB and UP Board schools alike (Business Today).
Rajasthan
Last year the switch to winter hours came on 1 October 2025. The Rajasthan Board had fixed winter vacation for all schools from 25 December 2025 to 5 January 2026. When the cold did not ease, Jaipur’s District Collector extended leave for pre-primary to Class 5 from 6 to 10 January and for Classes 6 to 8 from 6 to 8 January. Teachers still had to report and scheduled exams went ahead (The Telegraph, 6 January 2026).
Bihar
Bihar leaves it to district magistrates, and Patna’s orders show how quickly they escalate. On Friday, 19 December 2025, the Patna DM restricted all schools to 9 am to 4:30 pm, exempting board and pre-board classes (News18, citing ANI). A few days later, DM Dr Tyagarajan S M closed all schools up to Class 8, along with pre-schools and anganwadi centres, from 24 to 26 December under Section 163 of the BNSS. Classes above 8 could run only between 10 am and 3:30 pm, with pre-board and board-related classes again exempt (India Today). Muzaffarpur closed schools up to Class 8 until 27 December.
Madhya Pradesh
MP had an unusually early cold spell in November 2025, and collectors acted one district at a time. Chhindwara ordered that no school, primary to higher secondary, would open before 8:30 am. In Bhopal, government schools needed no change because they already run 10:30 am to 4 pm, model schools work 9:30 am to 3:30 pm, and many private schools shifted their start by 20 to 30 minutes on their own (Dainik Bhaskar). Indore Collector Shivam Verma then ordered all schools to begin at 9 am from 18 November 2025, after the city recorded its coldest November nights in nearly five decades. The same order asked for fitness certificates, trained staff and safety equipment on every school vehicle (Dainik Jagran).
Jammu and Kashmir
Under Order No. 309-DSEK of 2025, dated 30 October 2025, Kashmir’s schools moved to winter hours from 1 November 2025: 10 am to 3 pm within Srinagar municipal limits and 10:30 am to 3:30 pm elsewhere in the division (Greater Kashmir). The Valley and Jammu’s winter zone then went on their long winter vacation; schools up to Class 8 reopened on 1 March 2026 and higher classes a week earlier, on 22 February (The Indian Express).
Winter school timings status table (updated as orders arrive)
The table below is the quickest way to see where each state stands. The “last notified” column gives the most recent regular winter schedule we could confirm, and the status column will change as 2026-27 orders come in. Cold-wave orders are not listed here because they last only days; the state sections above show what they looked like last year.
| State / UT | Regular winter timing (last notified) | 2026-27 status (23 Oct 2026) | Who issues |
|---|---|---|---|
| Punjab | Primary 9 am–3 pm; middle to senior secondary 9 am–3:20 pm (1 Nov–28 Feb) | Notified: same hours from 1 Nov 2026 to 28 Feb 2027 | School Education Department |
| Haryana | Single shift 9:30 am–3:30 pm; double shift 7:55 am–12:30 pm and 12:40 pm–5:15 pm (15 Nov 2025–15 Feb 2026) | Awaited. Last year’s order came on 11 Nov | Directorate of Secondary Education |
| Chandigarh | No fixed winter clock confirmed; January 2026 orders set 9:30 am starts for Classes 10 and 12 | Awaited | UT Education Department |
| Delhi | No separate winter clock; GRAP decides hybrid or physical classes | No seasonal order; watch GRAP stage | Directorate of Education, on CAQM’s GRAP orders |
| Uttar Pradesh (council schools) | 9 am–3 pm, 1 Oct–31 Mar | In force since 1 Oct 2026 (standing rule) | Basic Shiksha Parishad; DMs for fog orders |
| Rajasthan | 10 am–4 pm (single shift) | Summer hours kept till 15 Oct 2026; follow-up winter order not yet seen by us | Directorate of Secondary Education; Collectors for cold-wave orders |
| Bihar | No statewide winter clock | District orders expected with the cold | District Magistrates |
| Madhya Pradesh | No statewide winter clock; Bhopal government schools 10:30 am–4 pm | District orders expected with the cold | Collectors |
| Jammu division | Summer zone 9 am–3 pm; winter zone 9:30 am–3:30 pm | Notified from 1 Oct 2026 | Directorate of School Education, Jammu |
| Kashmir division | Srinagar 10 am–3 pm; elsewhere 10:30 am–3:30 pm (from 1 Nov 2025) | Notified: 10 am–3:30 pm and 10:30 am–4 pm from 15 Oct 2026 | Directorate of School Education, Kashmir |
Note: CBSE, CISCE and other central boards do not set daily school hours. A CBSE school in Mohali follows Punjab’s order and a CBSE school in Patna follows the Patna DM, which is why the Noida order last January named every board.
What a cold-wave order usually says
Read enough of last winter’s orders and a pattern shows up. Almost all of them protect the youngest children first and the board-exam classes last.
- Youngest first. Pre-primary and primary classes are the first to be closed or sent online. Patna, Muzaffarpur, Gautam Buddh Nagar and Jaipur all drew the line at Class 8 or Class 5.
- A window, not a fixed time. Senior classes often get a band such as “not before 9:30 am and not after 3:30 pm” (Chandigarh) or “between 10 am and 3:30 pm” (Patna). Each school fixes its own bell inside that band.
- Exam classes exempt. Board and pre-board classes were exempted in Patna, and Chandigarh allowed pre-board classes to begin at 9 am.
- Teachers still report. Jaipur kept teachers on duty while students stayed home; Chandigarh told schools to adjust staff hours to the new student timings.
- Short life. Most orders run three to seven days and are then extended, revised or withdrawn. Chandigarh changed its timings three times in the first half of January 2026.
Are online classes allowed when schools close?
Only where the order says so. Chandigarh’s January 2026 order allowed online classes from 9 am for the classes it kept at home. Delhi’s pollution orders used a hybrid model for young children and, in late December, specifically said there would be no online classes for Classes 6 to 9 and 11 once physical classes resumed. Many district cold-wave orders say nothing about online teaching, and in that case the school decides. If your child’s school announces online classes during a closure, it is acting within its own discretion unless the order mentions them.
For parents: getting through fog mornings
Cold-wave orders tend to land late in the evening, often after the IMD issues a fog or cold-day warning. The practical problem for families is less the new timing than finding out about it in time.
Check before you leave home
Your school’s own app, SMS or class WhatsApp group is the fastest channel, because the school has to pass the order on anyway. District administrations often post the order on their X handles too; Rampur’s did last December. If the two disagree, the district order wins. News reports of “schools closed in UP” usually mean some districts, not the whole state, so look for your district by name.
School buses, vans and pick-up
A later start moves the whole pick-up chain, and van operators who run two or three school rounds sometimes resist. Ask the transport in-charge for the revised pick-up time in writing on the first day of a new order. Indore’s November 2025 order is a useful checklist for what to expect from a school vehicle: valid fitness certificate, trained staff, essential safety equipment, fire-safety tools and strict speed limits. If the van your child uses falls short on fog days, that is worth raising with the principal.
For children who walk or cycle, the later finish is the bigger risk. Kashmir’s schools outside Srinagar now close at 4 pm, and Haryana’s second shift ran until 5:15 pm last winter. A reflective strip on the school bag and a fixed route home cost little.
If your child is in Class 10 or 12
Expect school to stay open. Every order quoted above either exempted board classes or kept them physical. December and January are pre-board months, and the main board exams follow in February. CBSE had not released its 2027 schedule as of 22 October; our CBSE Class 10 date sheet 2027 and CBSE Class 12 date sheet 2027 pages will carry it the day it is out. For UP Board students, the UP Board 10th time table 2027 has the latest on their exam window, and all other boards are tracked under board exams.
What about Maharishi Vidya Mandir schools?
MVM branches are CBSE schools spread across several states, so a branch in Punjab follows the Punjab order and a branch in Madhya Pradesh follows its collector. The general MVM day and holiday pattern is covered in our guide to MVM school timing, uniform and holidays, and you can find your nearest branch in the MVM school list by state. Families planning a move for the next session can also see the MVM admission 2027-28 page. Always confirm winter hours with your own branch office; MVM Times is an independent news site, not the schools’ official portal.
Quick answers
When do winter school timings start in Punjab in 2026?
From 1 November 2026, with primary schools at 9 am to 3 pm and middle to senior secondary at 9 am to 3:20 pm, until 28 February 2027. As 1 November is a Sunday, the first school day on the new hours is Monday, 2 November.
Has Haryana announced winter timings for 2026?
Not as of 23 October 2026. Last year the order came on 11 November and applied from 15 November, with single-shift schools at 9:30 am to 3:30 pm.
Can a private or CBSE school ignore a DM’s cold-wave order?
No. District orders last winter applied to government, aided and private schools of all boards. Patna’s was issued under Section 163 of the BNSS and Jaipur’s warned of action under the Disaster Management Act.
Do teachers get the day off when schools close for cold?
Usually not. Jaipur’s January 2026 order kept teachers on duty, and Chandigarh’s order let schools adjust staff timings around online classes.
We will add Haryana’s, Chandigarh’s and Rajasthan’s 2026-27 orders to the status table as soon as they are issued, along with the first district fog orders of the season.
Official website: ssapunjab.org Visit official site ↗
Official Links: Winter School Timings
| What it is | Official link |
|---|---|
| Department of School Education, Punjab | ssapunjab.org |
| Department of School Education, Haryana | schooleducationharyana.gov.in |
| Education Department, UT Chandigarh | chdeducation.gov.in |
| Directorate of Education, Delhi | edudel.nic.in |
| Education Department, Rajasthan | education.rajasthan.gov.in |
| Commission for Air Quality Management (GRAP orders) | caqm.nic.in |
| India Meteorological Department (fog and cold-wave warnings) | mausam.imd.gov.in |
