Big Boost for Central Employees: 3% DA Hike Confirmed, Arrears to Follow

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Before the upcoming festive season, the central government is preparing to give a big gift to its more than 1.2 crore employees and pensioners. According to sources, the government is going to announce a 3% increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR). After this decision, the total DA of the employees will increase to 58%. Its formal announcement is likely to be made in the first week of October.

According to the information, this increase will be considered effective from July 1, 2025. This means that employees and pensioners will also get arrears for the three months of July, August and September along with the salary of October. This announcement is being made by the government especially just before Diwali (20-21 October), so that employees can get additional relief from inflation during the festive season.

The central government revises DA and DR twice a year as per the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission. The first revision is for the period from January to June and the second for the period from July to December. This calculation is done on the basis of the 12-month average of the Consumer Price Index (CPI-IW) for industrial workers. Based on the data from July 2024 to June 2025, the rate of DA works out to be 58%, which is 3% higher than the current 55%.

Last year also, the government had announced to increase DA before Diwali in October 2024. This time also, following this tradition, the government is going to give festive gifts to crores of families, due to which the market is also expected to increase.