New Delhi | Muslims in India will begin fasting from Friday as the Ramzan moon was not sighted this evening, clerics said.

At a meeting of the Ruyat-e-Hilal Committee, Imarat-e-Sharaiyah-Hind held at 1, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg here, it was announced that the moon has not been sighted in Delhi or in any other part of the country, a statement from Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind said.

The committee's secretary Maulana Najeebullah Qasmi declared that the month of Ramzan will begin from March 24.

Every year, the sighting of the Ramzan moon brings great cheer for Muslims as they scamper to make preparations for fasting and head to mosques to begin special 'Taraweeh' prayers, which will start from Thursday evening.

These special prayers start on the eve of the first day of fasting.

Ramzan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar during which Muslims worldwide refrain from eating and drinking anything from dawn to dusk and end their fast in the evening. After the end of one month of fasting, Muslims celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr.