Dussehra Gift! Govt approves 3% DA Hike for Employees
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The Government of India has provided Dussehra Gift to Central Government Employees. The government has approved a 3% increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR). Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced this on Wednesday afternoon. The increase will be effective from July 1. The increase will benefit around 48 lakh employees and 68 lakh pensioners.
The government said this hike is like a festive gift ahead of Dussehra and Diwali. This is the second increase this year. In March, DA was raised by 2%, which increased it from 53% of basic pay to 55%. Before that, in October, there was a 3% hike.
DA is given to government employees to help them deal with inflation. The current hike is based on the movement of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for industrial workers. DA is revised twice a year on this basis.
For example, an employee with a basic salary of ₹60,000 will now get ₹34,800 as DA, instead of ₹33,000 after the March hike.
In January, the government announced the 8th Pay Commission. This commission will decide future salary and allowance revisions. However, the official notification about its members and terms is still awaited.
Salary hikes will depend on the “fitment factor,” which is a multiplier applied to basic pay. Experts estimate it between 1.83 and 2.86. This could mean a hike of 13% to 34%.
Once the Pay Commission’s recommendations are applied from January 1, 2026, the DA (currently 55%) will be reset to zero and merged with basic pay. This will moderate the hike but will still benefit employees and pensioners, as pensions are linked to basic pay plus DA.
Earlier, the 7th Pay Commission had reviewed nearly 200 allowances. It abolished 52 and merged many others to make the salary system simple and transparent.
