- By Aditya Pratap Singh
- Tue, 01 Oct 2024 05:13 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
7th Pay Commission: Central government employees eagerly anticipate the announcement of the Dearness Allowance (DA) increase any time soon. The report of the delay in the DA hike have disappointed the lakhs of them. So, the question for them is when will the government employees be able to get DA? The Union government is likely to announce in October, according to numerous media reports.
However, no formal details concerning the DA increase have been released as of yet. Several media reports claimed that the government will likely announce a DA hike of 3-4 per cent in October just before Diwali, citing sources.
Government employees may Get a 3-4% DA Hike
Media reports indicate that the government is expected to announce an extra 3 to 4% increase from October 2024, following the typical trend of changes being made just before major festivals like Diwali. A 3% increase will increase the salary of an employee earning Rs 18,000 by Rs 540. A 4% increase will increase it by Rs 7,205.
Employees write to the finance minister over the delay
The Confederation of Central Government Employees and Workers has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman regarding the delay in announcing the Dearness Allowance (DA) for government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) for pensioners. As the Center raises the allowance twice a year, with effect from January 1 and July 1, the DA and DR are due from July 1, 2024.
The Confederation's General Secretary SB Yadav, in a letter to the minister, noted that the second DA raise is usually announced in the last week of September and the three-month (July-September) arrears are paid in the first week of salaries and pensions every year in October.
The DA formula is based on the AICPI, which takes an average of the previous 12 months and ensures that each increase reflects current economic conditions. Since no official percentage increase has been announced as of yet, there is still a lot of hope among employees and pensioners who are expecting the government to announce successive updates.