ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - The meeting of the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee to sight the moon for the holy month of Ramazan will be held in Peshawar today (Wednesday).
The meeting will be chaired by Chairman of the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad. The meeting will be held in the conference room of the Department of Auqaf, Hajj, Religious and Minority Affairs in Peshawar.
The final announcement regarding the Ramazan moon sighting would be made by Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad, Chairman of the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee.
Zonal committee meetings will also be held in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, and Quetta for which the Ministry of Religious Affairs has issued a notification.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted that the Ramazan moon will be sighted on the evening of Wednesday, February 18, and the holy month of Ramazan is likely to begin on February 19.
The PMD’s Climate Data Processing Centre stated that, based on astronomical calculations, there is a strong possibility of sighting the Ramazan 1447 AH moon on February 18, which corresponds to the 29th of Shaban.
Meanwhile, SUPARCO has issued its scientific prediction for the sighting of the new moon marking Ramadan 1447 Hijri.
According to SUPARCO, the new moon has been born on February 17, 2026, at 5:01 PM Pakistan Standard Time, with its age at sunset on February 18 estimated at approximately 25 hours and 48 minutes.
Coastal areas are expected to have a gap of around 59 minutes between sunset and moonset, improving visibility conditions.
Based on astronomical data, the new moon is likely to be visible to the naked eye on the evening of February 18, suggesting that the first day of Ramadan may fall on February 19, 2026.