7% Central DA hike for staff, pensioners
With retail inflation figures for industrial workers out, the government is now about to approve a hike in dearness allowance to 107 per cent from the existing 100 per cent. Once increased, it will benefit around three million Central govern- ment employees and five million pensioners, including dependents.
The finance ministry will now forward a proposal to the Cabinet. With the DA increase, pensioners will also gain as dearness relief provided to them will also be hiked to 107 per cent of basic pay.
With the retail inflation figure for industrial workers out, the government is now set to approve a hike in dearness allowance ( DA) to 107 per cent from the existing 100 per cent. Once increased, it will benefit around 30 lakh Central government employees and 50 lakh pensioners, including dependants.
Sources in the government said, “The average rate of retail inflation for industrial workers from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014 works out to be 7.25 per cent. Thus the Central government will hike dearness allowance for it employees by 7 per cent.”
Sources went on to add that the finance ministry would now put a Cabinet proposal for approval of 7 per cent DA hike from July 1 this year as the revised consumer price indexindustrial workers data for June was released by the labour ministry on Saturday.
With the increase in DA, the pensioners will also gain as the benefit provided to them as dearness relief will be hiked to 107 per cent of basic pay.
The previous UPA government had increased DA to 100 per cent from 90 per cent with effect from January 1, 2014, on February 28 on the basis of agreed formula for revision of the allowance.
However, the Central Government Employees’ Union is not very enthused by the 7 per cent hike in the dearness allowance as their long- pending demand of merger of DA with basic pay has not been given heed by the Seventh Pay Commission and the government.
“The erosion of value of wages is unbearable at 50 per cent dearness allowance. Now it will be 107 per cent. It is high time to merge DA with basic pay to provide relief to employees,” Confederation of Central Government Employees president K. K. N. Kutty said.