Under the 7th Pay Commission, Government is likely to raise the dearness allowance (DA) once again for Central government employees at the start of 2022.
The 3% hike could lead to an increase in salary of up to Rs 20,000 for government employees.
Currently, DA is being paid at the rate of 31% to all the central government employees and pensioners. But, there is a possibility of increasing 3% DA in January 2022.
In July 2021, the government had hiked the DA by 11 per cent to 28 per cent. It was earlier paid at the rate of 17 per cent. And in October, the DA was hiked to 31 per cent.
Dearness allowance is given to government employees in order to offset the rising costs of living and to allow government employees to maintain their living standards.
Generally, the DA rate is hiked twice a year between January and July, in order to adjust for inflation in the economy.
With the cost of consumer prices at one of the highest rates of inflation in recent years, it is to be expected that the government increases the DA accordingly as well.
Apart from an increase in the DA, the central government is also reportedly considering an increase in the fitment factor. The fitment factor determines the basic pay for all central government employees.
The fitment factor was hiked last in 2016, which saw the minimum basic pay of employees increase from Rs 6,000 to Rs 18,000. The likely increase to the fitment factor is going to bring the minimum basic salary to Rs 26,000, state reports.
