7th Pay Commission latest news: Lakhs of central government employees are eagerly awaiting the next round of Dearness Allowance (DA) hike. As per latest data and reports, the Centre is likely to announce a 3 percent hike in the DA figure which currently stands at 42 percent.
Retail inflation in the country hit a 15-month-high level in July, after which employees’ side has been expecting a 3 percent hike. Such an announcement by the Centre will take the DA for central employees to 45 percent.
While there is no official confirmation regarding the date for the DA and DR announcement, latest reports suggest the good news could come in September for central government employees and pensioners. Once announced, the DA hike will be effective from July 1, 2023.
“The CPI-IW for June 2023 was released on July 31, 2023. We are demanding a four percentage point hike in dearness allowance. But the dearness allowance hike works out to be a little over three percentage points. The government does not factor in hiking DA beyond the decimal point. Thus DA is likely to be increased by three percentage points to 45 per cent,” All India Railwaymen Federation General Secretary Shiva Gopal Mishra was recently quoted as saying by PTI.
The DA, DR announcement from the Central government comes twice a year for central employees and pensioners. The allowance proves vital to offset the impact of inflation. The DA amount is calculated on the basis of the latest data from the Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers (CPI-IW) as per the determined formula under the 7th Pay Commission rules.
The DA, DR benefit goes to over 1 crore central government employees and pensioners currently. After the earlier hike of 4 percent in January this year, the DA amount increased from 38 percent to current 42 percent.
