New Delhi | Jagran News Desk: In wake of the financial crisis in the country due to the novel coronavirus, the Centre on Thursday announced that it has decided to freeze the three installments of dearness allowance (DA) for central government employees and pensioners till July 2021. It also said that no arrears for the period from January 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021, will be paid.
The central government, however, announced that dearness allowance (DA) and dearness relief (DR) at current rates will continue to be paid.
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"In view of the crisis arising out of COVID-19, it has been decided that additional instalment of dearness allowance payable to central government employees and dearness relief (DR) to central government pensioners due from January 1, 2020, shall not be paid," the Ministry of Finance said in a statement, as reported by news agency PTI.
"The additional instalment of DA and DR due from July 1, 2020, and January 1, 2021, shall also not be paid," it added.
The step has been taken in view of the coronavirus pandemic in the country and the move will help the Centre save around Rs 37,350 crore in the financial years 2020-2021 and 2021-2022, the government said.
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It said that the savings on suspension of these instalments of DA and DR of state government employees and pensioners will be around Rs 82,566 crore which will help the Centre and the state to save around Rs 1.20 lakh crore combined.
The government earlier this year had hiked the DA by 4 per cent, from 17 per cent of basic pay and pension to 21 per cent of basic pay and pension for central government employees and pensioners.
At that time, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar had said the 48 lakh government employees, 65 lakh pensioners would benefit from the move while adding that the government will incur Rs 14,595 crore additional expense on account of this hike.