# Pitru Paksha Ashtami Shradh rituals today, 3 October 2026-10-03T01:51:35+00:00 | India | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets Pitru Paksha Ashtami Shradh is being observed on Saturday, 3 October 2026. Aajtak.in reports the Ashtami tithi began at 7:59 am on 3 October and ends at 5:51 am on 4 October. TV9 Hindi reports the kutup muhurat for performing shradh is from 11:54 am to 12:41 pm, while Aajtak.in gives it as 11:46 am to 12:34 pm. The shradh is performed for ancestors who died on the Ashtami tithi of any month. TV9 Hindi adds three prohibitions for the day: no consumption of coconut, no use of sesame oil, and abstaining from tamasic food like garlic, onion, meat and alcohol. Both outlets describe the ritual sequence: sitting on a kusha grass mat facing east or south, offering water with black sesame, barley, milk and tulsi leaves, performing tarpan, havan, panchbali and feeding a brahmin. Aajtak.in specifies that the son-in-law or nephew may also be fed. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Both Aajtak.in and TV9 Hindi offer neutral, service-oriented coverage of the Ashtami Shradh rituals on 3 October 2026. They agree on the core facts: the tithi, the purpose of the shradh for those who died on Ashtami, and the basic procedure of tarpan, havan, panchbali and brahmin bhoj. The only factual difference is the kutup muhurat timing, with Aajtak.in reporting an 11:46 am start and TV9 Hindi an 11:54 am start. TV9 Hindi adds three dietary prohibitions and a disclaimer that the information is based on religious beliefs, which Aajtak.in omits. The coverage is uniform straight reporting without political or ideological framing, the practical takeaway is that devotees have until 4 October morning to perform the rites. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral - aajtak.in (neutral report) Straight ritual guide with muhurat and procedure, no framing beyond tradition. - tv9hindi.com (neutral report) Ritual guide plus prohibitions list, disclaimer appended, no political slant. This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Tags: Ashtami Shradh, Hindu rituals, Pitru Paksha Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/pitru-paksha-ashtami-shradh-rituals-today-3-october/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/pitru-paksha-ashtami-shradh-rituals-today-3-october/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/