PUTRAJAYA: Effective this year, the government has agreed to give its Hindu staff additional one-day unrecorded leave to celebrate Deepavali.
Public Services Department director-general Datuk Seri Borhan Dolah said this in a letter dated today that was issued to all government heads, including to the ministry secretaries-general and state secretaries.
The circular states that Hindu staff would be allowed to take unrecorded leave on Nov 7, the day after Deepavali this year.
“This is to give civil servants more time to celebrate with their family members,” said the director-general in the letter.
Last month, the Education Ministry was reported to have allowed students of Tamil vernacular schools (SJKT) to take special holiday or replacement holiday for Deepavali.
The ministry said it had notified state education directors to give approval to the request of Tamil schools, seeking additional holidays.
Tamil schools in the Group A (Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Johor) where holidays are fixed from Nov 4 to Nov 6, can request for holidays on Nov 7 and Nov 8.
Schools in Group B (states apart from those mentioned in Group A) with holidays fixed between Nov 5 and Nov 7, can request for holidays on Nov 8 and Nov 9.
It also said that if the schools allocation for special holidays had been used up, they should request for replacement holiday.
Teachers who celebrate Deepavali, other than those who teach in Tamil schools, could request for special holiday (Cuti Rehat Khas) through their school administrations.
Hindu students who are in other schools, besides Tamil schools are also allowed to be on holiday on the dates mentioned earlier.
The ministry’s daily school management division issued the notice to state education directors on Oct 1.