14th or 15th January! When will Makar Sankranti be celebrated? Know the exact date and auspicious time

Makar Sankranti 2026: The festival of Makar Sankranti is extremely important in Hindu religion and is celebrated with great pomp throughout the country. Every year people are excited about this day, but doubt has arisen regarding the date of Makar Sankranti in 2026. People are confused about the two dates, January 14 and January 15. Let us know what will be the exact date of Makar Sankranti and when will be the auspicious time for worship on this day.

Makar Sankranti Date: 14 January or 15 January?

Different astrologers have different opinions regarding Makar Sankranti this year. According to Pandit Pratik Bhatt, Makar Sankranti occurs when the Sun enters Capricorn, and this year the Sun will enter Capricorn on January 14, due to which Makar Sankranti should be celebrated on January 14. At the same time, Vanya Arya and Shruti Kharbanda also believe that the Sun will enter Uttarayan on 14th January, hence it would be appropriate to celebrate the festival of Makar Sankranti on 14th January.

However, astrologer Nitisha Malhotra is of the opinion that the Sun will enter Capricorn on the night of 14 January at 9:49 pm, due to which the festival of Makar Sankranti should be celebrated on 15 January. They say that the festival of Sankranti is celebrated only after the time of Sun’s transit, and since Sun’s transit is at night, this year Makar Sankranti will be celebrated on 15th January. Although most of the pundits are in favor of celebrating Makar Sankranti on 14th January only, according to them, it would be more auspicious to celebrate this festival on 14th January only.

Auspicious time of Makar Sankranti

Worship and charity have special significance on the day of Makar Sankranti. This day is considered a day of virtue and blessings. This time the auspicious time of Makar Sankranti will be from 3:13 pm to 5:45 pm. Apart from this, Mahapunya Kaal will last from 3:13 pm to 4:58 pm, in which the religious works done get more results.

If you are thinking of worshiping and donating on the day of Makar Sankranti, then the auspicious time for this will be from 9:03 am to 10:48 am. During this time, you can take a holy bath and worship and earn virtue by donating.