DA/DR rate hike file reaches Union Cabinet, dearness allowance to increase by 3-4 percent

New Delhi| The rates of dearness allowance/dearness relief of central employees and pensioners may increase by three to four percent. The file of increase in DA/DR rates has reached the table of the Union Cabinet. This file can be approved in the cabinet meeting.

Last week too, central employees were expected to announce increase in DA and DR rates, but this could not happen. Before Diwali, the government can give gifts to the employees by increasing the rates of dearness allowance/dearness relief. Currently getting DA/DR at 50 percent rate.

The increase in DA/DR rates is announced in the month of September. October has begun, but these allowances have not been announced yet. The Union Cabinet meeting was held on October 3. In that, it was announced to give 78 days bonus to railway employees.

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav had informed that a bonus of Rs 2029 crore has been approved for railway employees. After this, the central employees were hopeful that the DA would be announced in the Union Cabinet meeting of October 9. However, the DA file did not reach the Union Cabinet meeting that day.

SB Yadav, general secretary of the Confederation of Central Government Employees and Workers, had written to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 30 September demanding an increase in DA rates without any delay. It was said in the letter that these allowances were paid in the first week of October. This time the Central Government has not made any such announcement. If the Central Government announces allowances and bonuses in October, they can be paid in November. On the other hand, the government itself is earning profit by not releasing these allowances on time.

The increase in the rates of dearness allowance ‘DA’ for central government employees is announced several months late. Through this the government itself earns profit. Since the increase in DA/DR rates puts a burden of thousands of crores of rupees on the government. In such a situation, the government announces DA/DR with a delay of three-four months. During this period, the government invests money, on which it gets a good amount of interest. As per the rules, there is a provision to increase dearness allowance and dearness relief from January 1 and July 1, but every time the central government delays this announcement by three-four months. Usually DA is announced in September, but this time till now the government had not issued any statement regarding DA increase.