7th Pay Commission: Government’s 3 awaited announcements may come during Holi

Over a crore, central government staff and pensioners might hear good news at this time of year regarding the formal confirmation of payment of 18-month-old Dearness Allowance (DA) arrears, fitment factors and DA hike. According to multiple media sources, the central personnel might hear the good news by Holi this year. 

18-month-old DA arrears:
Central govt employees and pensioners have arrears of DA from July 2020 to January 2021, because 2 years ago, during the Corona period, the central government banned dearness allowance/dearness relief for 48 lakh central employees and 64 lakh pensioners, which they have been demanding for a long time now. 

According to media reports, Level-3 employees' DA arrears range from Rs 11,880 to Rs 37,554. Employee arrears for Levels 13 or 14 can be anywhere between Rs 1,44,200 and Rs 2,15,900. There is no confirmation of the above-mentioned range. According to prior reports, these data may also change as a result of conversations with the administration in the future.

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DA hike:
The Union Cabinet had approved the release of an additional instalment of Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief @ 4 per cent to Central Government employees and pensioners due from July 1, 2022, based on the percentage increase in the 12 monthly average of the All India Consumer Price Index for the period ending June 2022.

The most current media reports state that due to rising inflation rates, government employees may get a 3% increase in their Dearness Allowance (DA).

Fitment factor:
The current value of the common fitment factor is 2.57%. In other words, if a person receives a basic salary of Rs 15,500 in the 4200 Grade Pay, his total pay will be Rs 15,500 x 2.57, or Rs 39,835.