Bureau Report
KARACHI: This year’s Ramadan is predicted to be of 30 days with Eid ul Fitr likely to fall on Friday, May 14 (Friday).
“The new moon of Shawwal 1442 AH will be born on the night between May 11 and 12 at about 12:01 pm. The sun will set and the age of the moon will be 19 hours and 31 minutes,” Head of the Institute of Space Sciences and Technology, Karachi University, Professor Javed Iqbal told the publication. “The time between sunset and moonset will be only 36 minutes.” Iqbal explained that the moon will not be visible on May 12 as it will be about 6.5 degrees from the horizon at sunset. Based on this, he said that there is a strong possibility that Ramadan will last 30 days and Eid will fall on May 14.
Controversy has traditionally surrounded the citing of the moon in the country every year at the start and culmination of Ramadan. The controversy splits Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and tribal areas from the rest of the country which results in two different dates for Eid in Pakistan.
Moreover, there may be seven holidays for government employees on the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr from May 10 to 16, it emerged on Monday. The sources claimed that a summary has been moved to the federal cabinet for seven official holidays.
