Poila Baisakh BanglaDesh

History

Poila Baisakh is the first day of the Bengali New Year. Poila Baisakh falls generally on the 14th or 15th of April of the English Calendar. It is an auspicious occasion and Bengalis perform puja as well as join in social gatherings to celebrate the first day of the new year
The Bengali calendar is closely tied with the Hindu solar calendar, based on the Surya Siddhanta. As with many other variants of the Hindu solar calendar, the Bengali calendar commences in mid-April of the Gregorian year.
Under the Mughals, agricultural taxes were collected according to the Hijri calendar. However, as the Hijri calendar is a purely lunar calendar, it does not coincide with the harvest. As a result, farmers were hard-pressed to pay taxes out of season. In order to streamline tax collection, the Mughal Emperor Akbar ordered a reform of the calendar. Accordingly, Fatehullah Shirazi, a renowned scholar and astronomer, formulated the Bengali year on the basis of the Hijri lunar and Hindu solar calendars. The new Fasli San (agricultural year) was introduced on 10/11 March 1584, but was dated from Akbar's ascension to the throne in 1556. The new year subsequently became known as Bônggabdo or Bengali year.