Assam adds ‘Bhaskarabda’ as Official Assam Calendar

• 20 Oct 2021

• On 18^th October 2021, the Government of Assam has decided to add ‘Bhaskarabda’ in addition to ‘Saka’ and ‘Gregorian’ that will be used in the official calendar.
• The local calendar is counted from the date of the ascension of Bhaskaravarman, the 7th-century ruler of Kamrup.
• Bhaskarabda began when Bhaskaravarman was crowned ruler of the Kamrupa kingdom. He was a contemporary and political ally of northern Indian ruler Harshavardhana.
• Unlike the Gregorian, where a day starts at midnight, the Assamese calendar begins and ends at sunrise over 24 hours.
• While the Gregorian goes by the solar cycle, the Saka and Bhaskarabda use a lunisolar system based on both the phases of the moon and the solar year.
• The gap between Bhaskarabda and Gregorian is 593 years.