Big Diwali gift! Centre announces 3% DA hike for govt  employees

The Centre on Wednesday announced a 3 per cent hike in Dearness Allowance (DA) for government employees and pensioners, lifting payments from 55 per cent to 58 per cent of basic salary. This DA hike will come into effect retroactively from July 1.

Informing the decision, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, "The Union Government has approved an increase in Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief by 3%, effective from July 1."

“The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved an additional instalment of Dearness Allowance (DA) to Central Government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) to pensioners w.e.f. 01.07.2024, representing an increase of three per cent (3 per cent) over the existing rate of 50 per cent of the Basic Pay/Pension, to compensate against price rise,” read a government release.

While the hike will benefit approximately 49 lakh central government employees and 69 lakh pensioners, it is likely to put a burden of around Rs 10,000 crore on the government exchequer.

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Earlier, the Centre had raised DA in March this year by 2 per cent.