Indian calendars

Purnimanta and Amanta Calendars: Regional Variations Across India

Why North Indian months end on Full Moon (Purnima) while South and West Indian months end on New Moon (Amavasya).

By NaamSetu Editorial TeamPublished 6 September 20266 min read

The Hindu lunar calendar calculates months using one of two reckoning methods:

View current lunar month dates on [NaamSetu Calendar](https://panchang.naamsetu.in/calendars).

## Purnimanta System In the Purnimanta scheme (followed in North and East India), the month begins on the day after Full Moon (*Purnima*) and ends on the next Full Moon.

## Amanta System In the Amanta scheme (followed in Maharashtra, Gujarat, South India), the month begins on the day after New Moon (*Amavasya*) and ends on the next New Moon.

## Festival Alignment Because festivals are linked to specific Tithis and Pakshas (bright or dark fortnight), major celebrations occur on the exact same astronomical day throughout India.

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