Ruet-e-Hilal Committees of India

A Ruet-e-Hilal committee is a body of ulama and religious scholars whose job is to sight the hilal — the thin new crescent moon — and, on that basis, announce the start of a new Islamic month. Because the Islamic calendar is lunar, every month begins only when the crescent is actually seen after sunset, not when a printed calendar says so. Ramadan, Eid-ul-Fitr, Muharram, Eid-ul-Adha and every other sacred date hangs on this one announcement.

Here is the part many people don't realise: India has no single national moon-sighting authority. There is no one office whose word binds the whole country. Instead, different regions follow their own respected committees — some tied to a historic masjid, some to a large ulama organisation, some simply to the local scholars a community has trusted for generations.

This is exactly why the chand ka elaan can land on different days in different places. When you hear that Eid is one day in Kerala and the next day in Lucknow, it isn't a mistake — it's two trusted committees each making their own honest call about whether the moon was seen in their region. Understanding moon sighting in India starts with understanding this map of authorities.

The real work happens on the evening of the 29th of the Islamic month. Every lunar month is either 29 or 30 days, so on the 29th evening the committee gathers shortly after Maghrib to find out which one it will be. If the crescent is sighted, the new month begins the next day; if not, the current month completes 30 days.

Sighting alone is not enough — testimony must be verified. Committees receive shahadat, the sworn eyewitness accounts of people who claim to have seen the moon, often phoned in from towns and villages across the region. Experienced scholars then cross-examine each witness: where exactly did you look, at what time, in which direction, was the sky clear? Only credible, consistent testimony is accepted. This careful checking is what keeps the announcement trustworthy.

A typical committee's night looks like this:

• Gather after Maghrib on the 29th and open the lines for reports from across the region.
• Collect shahadat from eyewitnesses and record their statements.
• Cross-examine each witness and weigh the testimony against the expected position of the moon.
• Consult with scholars and connected committees in other districts and cities.
• Announce the decision — moon sighted, or the month completes 30 days.
• Pass the verdict to local masjids, who relay it at the next prayer and through their communities.

Masjids are the last mile. Once a committee decides, mosques announce it so families know whether to keep the fast, prepare for Eid, or observe Ashura. Some larger committees now share their announcements through official portals, recorded phone messages and public statements, but the chain of trust still runs through the local masjid.

These committees carry a heavy responsibility: their single announcement sets in motion more than a billion acts of worship. Their word decides the night Ramadan fasting begins, the morning of Eid-ul-Fitr, the day of Ashura in Muharram, and the timing of the Bakrid Qurbani for Eid-ul-Adha. Get the date wrong and an entire region could fast on the wrong day or celebrate Eid a day early — so the care they take is not bureaucracy, it is protecting people's ibadah.

They also keep order. Without a recognised committee making the call, every household would argue over its own sighting and communities would fracture into confusion. For matters of worship, the local committee's confirmed verdict is final — it outranks any moon-phase app, astronomical calculation or foreign announcement. Calculation can tell you the moon is possible; only a trusted committee's accepted shahadat makes the month begin. That is why, when you ask India mein chand kaun dekhta hai, the honest answer is: your region's ulama, and for your prayers their word is the one to follow.