Millions of central employees and pensioners are eagerly waiting for the announcement of DA/DR (dearness allowance and inflation relief) on behalf of the central government. The DA is revised twice every year, and the second change is yet to happen. In this regard, the Central Government Employees and Labor Confederation has written a letter to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman demanding immediate intervention. The organization has said in the letter that your focus is to draw towards not announcing the installment of DA/DR from 01-07-2025, usually it was announced in the last week of September and the arrears of three months were given in the first week of October. The letter further states that there is “serious dissatisfaction” among employees and pensioners regarding the delay in the announcement.
When is DA/DR announced?
The government announces DA for employees and DR for pensioners twice a year: first half (January to June) and second half for half (July to December) in September/October. The DA amendment for the second half of the year is usually announced in the last week of September or the first week of October. Anyway, employees get two or three months arrears with increased salary or pension. Now only a few days are left for the end of the month, employees are hoping that the government will announce an increase in DA so that they can get the September salary with arrears.
How is DA calculation done?
The Calculation of DA is used by using a formula based on the All India Consumer Price Index (CPI-IW) for industrial workers. This is the formula: DA (%) = [(पिछले 12 महीनों के लिए सीपीआई-आईडब्ल्यू का औसत – 261.42) ÷ 261.42] X 100. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is issued by the Labor Bureau and monitors inflation, which helps to maintain the actual income of employees and pensioners, the base year 2016 for the current calculation.
Questions about festive season and bonus
The Central Government Employees and Labor Federation also said that along with coming close to Durga Puja festival, productivity bonus (PLB) and adhoc bonus should also be announced. The letter demanded that the government should issue orders immediately so that employees and pensioners can get relief before the festival. The letter states that the Confederation demands your immediate intervention in the above case and requests you to order DA/DR order and time to announce the announcement of the order/issue.
Delay in eighth pay commission
Meanwhile, the eighth pay commission’s formal notification and the formation of the panel is still going on, due to which they are disappointed. Compared to previous commissions, this time the formal formation process has been a bit longer. According to the government, the 8th Pay Commission is to be implemented from 1 January 2026. Under this commission, the salary of central employees is to increase by 30 to 34 percent.
Bonus announced for railway employees
Giving great relief to about 11 lakh non-gazetted railway employees, the Union Cabinet has announced a performance-based bonus (PLB) on September 24, equal to 78 days salary. According to a PIB release, the payment of this bonus will cost a burden of about Rs 1,866 crore on the central government treasury. In view of the outstanding performance of railway employees, the Union Cabinet approved Rs 1865.68 crore for 10,91,146 railway employees. The Center provides PLB to eligible employees before Durga Puja/Dussehra holidays every year.