Odisha State Department does not formally issue notification declaring a school holiday across the state as of Tuesday, January 27, 2026 and to operate on tomorrow, Wednesday, January 28, 2026. While a general "Odisha Bandh" call from 6:00 AM - 2:00 PM has been made by the Navnirman Krushak Sangathan (NKS), the decision for the closure of schools is being made by individual district administrations and management offices for private schools.
The state of the educational facilities. No order by the School and Mass Education Department to close down is yet available. But because the bandh is backed by major opposition parties such as the Congress and BJD, huge disruption to public transport is anticipated. Consequently, many private schools in the main cities such as Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Sambalpur might even seek to transfer their classes electronically or declare a precautionary holiday for students to mitigate risk.
Why is the Odisha Bandh held?
8 hour strike (January 28 (6AM-2PM)) This is being organised by the Navnirman Krushak Sangathan to protest against a string of issues:
- Procurement of Paddy: Suspicion of maladministration or irregularities at the government mandis.
- Utility Prices: Protests against smart meter installation and the higher electricity prices.
- Tougher Penalties: Opposition to increased fines under the Pollution Under Control Certificate (PUCC) mechanism.
What’s Open and What’s Closed?
- Transport: Expect very serious disruptions. During the morning hours, buses as a public transport service (Mo Bus and private), auto-rickshaws and taxi services are encouraged to remain off the roads.
- Markets: The stores and shops in major city centres will likely be closed until 2:00 PM.
- Essential Services: Hospitalisation, drug disposal, ambulance, milk supply etc. will also be strictly exempted from the Bandh, and are unaffected and will be functioning normally.
- Banks & Offices: Not officially closed, but no doubt there may be poor attendance from commuting.
Parental and student advice
It’s an emergent situation and parents should check for direct messages from school authorities early tomorrow morning, they said. If your child takes public transport or school buses, confirm they work before heading outside.
