diff --git a/.github/workflows/image.yml b/.github/workflows/image.yml
index 5983d882c..513cf34ec 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/image.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/image.yml
@@ -4,13 +4,18 @@ on:
     branches:
       - develop
       - 'release/**'
-    tags:
-      - 'v[0-9]+.[0-9]+.[0-9]+**'
+  workflow_call:
+    inputs:
+      tag:
+        description: 'Tag to be released (e.g. v4.2.0)'
+        required: true
+        type: string
 
 env:
   CARGO_TERM_COLOR: always
   CARGO_INCREMENTAL: 0
   CI: 1
+  TAG: ${{ inputs.tag }}
 
 jobs:
   image-build-push:
@@ -32,5 +37,16 @@ jobs:
         with:
           username: ${{ secrets.DOCKERHUB_USERNAME }}
           password: ${{ secrets.DOCKERHUB_TOKEN }}
+      - name: Login to GHCR
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
+        with:
+          registry: ghcr.io
+          username: ${{ github.actor }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
       - name: Build and push the release images
-        run: ./scripts/release.sh
+        run: |
+          if [[ "${{ github.event_name }}" == "workflow_dispatch" ]]; then
+            ./scripts/release.sh --tag ${{ inputs.tag }} --registry ghcr.io/openebs/mayastor/dev
+          elif [[ "${{ github.event_name }}" == "push" ]]; then
+            ./scripts/release.sh
+          fi        
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3ea8231cf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+name: Release Tagging Workflow
+
+on:
+  release:
+    types: [ created ]
+
+jobs:
+  preflight-checks:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+          submodules: recursive
+
+      - uses: cachix/install-nix-action@v31.3.0
+      - name: Pre-populate nix-shell
+        run: |
+          export NIX_PATH=nixpkgs=$(jq '.nixpkgs.url' nix/sources.json -r)
+          echo "NIX_PATH=$NIX_PATH" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+          nix-shell --pure --run "echo" ./scripts/staging/shell.nix
+
+      - name: Login to Docker Hub
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
+        with:
+          username: ${{ secrets.DOCKERHUB_USERNAME }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.DOCKERHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+      - name: Validate if the release should be even made
+        run: |
+          nix-shell --pure --run "./scripts/staging/validate.sh \
+            --tag ${{ github.ref_name }} \
+            --type release" ./scripts/staging/shell.nix
+
+  release-images:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    needs: preflight-checks
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+          submodules: recursive
+
+      - uses: cachix/install-nix-action@v31.3.0
+      - name: Pre-populate nix-shell
+        run: |
+          export NIX_PATH=nixpkgs=$(jq '.nixpkgs.url' nix/sources.json -r)
+          echo "NIX_PATH=$NIX_PATH" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+          nix-shell --pure --run "echo" ./scripts/staging/shell.nix
+
+      - name: Login to Docker Hub
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
+        with:
+          username: ${{ secrets.DOCKERHUB_USERNAME }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.DOCKERHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+      - name: Login to GHCR
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
+        with:
+          registry: ghcr.io
+          username: ${{ github.actor }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+      - name: Mirror images from dev to Docker Hub
+        run: |
+          nix-shell --pure --run "./scripts/staging/mirror-images.sh \
+            --source ghcr.io/${{ github.repository_owner }}/dev \
+            --target docker.io/${{ github.repository_owner }} \
+            --tag ${{ github.ref_name }}" ./scripts/staging/shell.nix
diff --git a/.github/workflows/staging.yml b/.github/workflows/staging.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..14586c4f4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/staging.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+name: Staging Release
+
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      tag:
+        description: 'Tag to be released (e.g. v4.2.0)'
+        required: true
+        type: string
+
+env:
+  TAG: ${{ inputs.tag }}
+  CI: 1
+
+jobs:
+  preflight-checks:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+          submodules: recursive
+
+      - uses: cachix/install-nix-action@v31.3.0
+      - name: Pre-populate nix-shell
+        run: |
+          export NIX_PATH=nixpkgs=$(jq '.nixpkgs.url' nix/sources.json -r)
+          echo "NIX_PATH=$NIX_PATH" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+          nix-shell --pure --run "echo" ./scripts/staging/shell.nix
+
+      - name: Login to 
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
+        with:
+          username: ${{ secrets.REGISTRY_USERNAME }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.REGISTRY_PASSWORD }}
+
+      - name: Validate if the staging should be even made
+        run: |
+          nix-shell --pure --keep CI --run "./scripts/staging/validate.sh \
+            --tag ${TAG} \
+            --type staging" ./scripts/staging/shell.nix
+
+  build-images:
+    uses: ./.github/workflows/image.yml
+    needs: preflight-checks
+    with:
+      tag: ${{ inputs.tag }}
+    secrets: inherit
diff --git a/scripts/staging/log.sh b/scripts/staging/log.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..6c12e0ddf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/staging/log.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+
+# Write output to error output stream.
+log_to_stderr() {
+  echo -e "${1}" >&2
+}
+
+log_error() {
+  log_to_stderr "ERROR: $1"
+}
+
+log_warn() {
+  log_to_stderr "WARNING: $1"
+}
+
+# Exit with error status and print error.
+log_fatal() {
+  local -r _return="${2:-1}"
+  log_error "$1"
+  exit "${_return}"
+}
+
+log() {
+  echo -e "${1}"
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/scripts/staging/mirror-images.sh b/scripts/staging/mirror-images.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..6db22fe11
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/staging/mirror-images.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+
+# Mirror container images from source registry to target registry using crane.
+# Preserves multi-platform support and image digests.
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+SCRIPT_DIR="$(dirname "$(realpath "${BASH_SOURCE[0]:-"$0"}")")"
+ROOT_DIR="${SCRIPT_DIR}/../.."
+
+# if PARENT_ROOT_DIR is not defined use the one below
+: "${PARENT_ROOT_DIR:=$ROOT_DIR}"
+
+source "$PARENT_ROOT_DIR/scripts/utils/log.sh"
+NO_RUN=true . "$PARENT_ROOT_DIR/scripts/release.sh"
+
+IMAGES=()
+for name in $DEFAULT_IMAGES; do
+  image=$($NIX_EVAL -f "$PARENT_ROOT_DIR" "images.$BUILD_TYPE.$name.imageName" --raw --quiet --argstr product_prefix "$PRODUCT_PREFIX")
+  IMAGES+=("${image##*/}")
+done
+
+SOURCE=""
+TARGET=""
+TAG=""
+
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+  case $1 in
+    --source)
+      SOURCE="$2"
+      shift 2
+      ;;
+    --target)
+      TARGET="$2"
+      shift 2
+      ;;
+    --tag)
+      TAG="$2"
+      shift 2
+      ;;
+    *)
+      log_fatal "Unknown option: $1"
+      ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+if [[ -z "$SOURCE" ]] || [[ -z "$TARGET" ]] || [[ -z "$TAG" ]]; then
+  log_fatal "Usage: $0 --source <source> --target <target> --tag <tag>"
+fi
+
+echo "Mirroring images from ${SOURCE} to ${TARGET} with tag ${TAG}"
+
+for IMAGE in "${IMAGES[@]}"; do
+  echo "Mirroring ${IMAGE}:${TAG}..."
+
+  SRC="${SOURCE}/${IMAGE}:${TAG}"
+  DEST="${TARGET}/${IMAGE}:${TAG}"
+  crane copy --platform all "${SRC}" "${DEST}"
+
+  echo "✓ Successfully mirrored ${IMAGE}:${TAG}"
+done
diff --git a/scripts/staging/shell.nix b/scripts/staging/shell.nix
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..2a4549e31
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/staging/shell.nix
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+{ pkgs ? import (import ../../nix/sources.nix).nixpkgs {
+    overlays = [ (_: _: { inherit (import ../../nix/sources.nix); }) (import ../../nix/overlay.nix { }) ];
+  }
+}:
+pkgs.mkShellNoCC {
+  name = "staging-shell";
+  buildInputs = with pkgs; [
+    oras
+    crane
+    yq-go
+    jq
+  ] ++ pkgs.lib.optional (builtins.getEnv "IN_NIX_SHELL" == "pure" && pkgs.system != "aarch64-darwin") [
+    docker
+    git
+    curl
+    nix
+    kubernetes-helm-wrapped
+    cacert
+  ];
+}
diff --git a/scripts/staging/validate.sh b/scripts/staging/validate.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..aefdbbb23
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/staging/validate.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,105 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+SCRIPT_DIR="$(dirname "$(realpath "${BASH_SOURCE[0]:-"$0"}")")"
+ROOT_DIR="${SCRIPT_DIR}/../.."
+: "${PARENT_ROOT_DIR:=$ROOT_DIR}"
+
+source "$PARENT_ROOT_DIR/scripts/staging/log.sh"
+
+# --- Run release.sh in subshell so it resolves SOURCE_REL correctly ---
+(
+  export NO_RUN=true
+  export CI=1  # avoid unbound variable errors and skip submodule update in CI
+  echo "📦 Running release.sh from: $PARENT_ROOT_DIR/scripts/release.sh"
+  bash "$PARENT_ROOT_DIR/scripts/release.sh"
+)
+
+
+DOCKERHUB_ORG="${DOCKERHUB_ORG:-openebs}"
+IMAGE_REGISTRY="${IMAGE_REGISTRY:-docker.io}"
+
+TRIGGER=""
+TAG=""
+
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+    case $1 in
+        --trigger|--type) TRIGGER="$2"; shift 2 ;;
+        --tag) TAG="$2"; shift 2 ;;
+        -h|--help)
+            cat <<EOF
+Usage: $0 --trigger <trigger> [--tag <tag>]
+Options:
+  --trigger <type>        release, staging, develop, prerelease
+  --type <type>           Alias for --trigger
+  --tag <tag>             Release tag (e.g., v2.9.0)
+EOF
+            exit 0 ;;
+        *) log_fatal "Unknown option $1" ;;
+    esac
+done
+
+echo "Validating trigger: $TRIGGER"
+
+case "$TRIGGER" in
+    release|staging|develop|prerelease)
+        echo "✅ Valid trigger: $TRIGGER"
+        ;;
+    *)
+        log_fatal "❌ Error: Invalid trigger '$TRIGGER'."
+        ;;
+esac
+
+echo "Validating tag: $TAG"
+
+case "$TRIGGER" in
+    release|staging)
+        [[ "$TAG" =~ ^v[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+(-rc\.[0-9]+)?$ ]] \
+            || log_fatal "❌ Tag must be in format vX.Y.Z or vX.Y.Z-rc.N"
+        ;;
+    develop)
+        [[ "$TAG" =~ ^v[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+-develop$ ]] \
+            || log_fatal "❌ Tag must be in format vX.Y.Z-develop"
+        ;;
+    prerelease)
+        [[ "$TAG" == "v0.0.0" ]] \
+            || log_fatal "❌ For prerelease builds, tag must be exactly v0.0.0"
+        ;;
+esac
+
+echo "✅ Tag validation passed"
+
+# --- Image Validation Section ---
+VERSION="${TAG#v}"
+
+dockerhub_tag_exists() {
+    local repository="$1" tag="$2"
+    curl --silent -f -lSL "https://hub.docker.com/v2/repositories/${repository#docker.io/}/tags/${tag}" >/dev/null 2>&1
+}
+
+check_images() {
+    if [[ -n "${DEFAULT_IMAGES:-}" ]]; then
+        for name in $DEFAULT_IMAGES; do
+            image=$($NIX_EVAL -f "$PARENT_ROOT_DIR" "images.$BUILD_TYPE.$name.imageName" --raw --quiet --argstr product_prefix "$PRODUCT_PREFIX")
+            image_name="${image##*/}"
+            if dockerhub_tag_exists "${DOCKERHUB_ORG}/${image_name}" "${TAG}"; then
+                log_fatal "❌ Image ${DOCKERHUB_ORG}/${image_name}:${TAG} already exists"
+            else
+                echo "✅ Image ${DOCKERHUB_ORG}/${image_name}:${TAG} does not exist"
+            fi
+        done
+    else
+        echo "⚠️  No DEFAULT_IMAGES defined — skipping image existence checks."
+    fi
+}
+
+case "$TRIGGER" in
+    staging|release)
+        check_images
+        ;;
+    develop|prerelease)
+        echo "Skipping image checks for $TRIGGER"
+        ;;
+esac
+
+echo "✅ All validations completed successfully"