Ahead of Diwali, the government hiked Dearness Allowance of government employees by five per cent. The decision was taken after a cabinet meeting headed by PM Modi on Monday.
The Dearness Allowance (DA) of central government employees will be raised by five per cent. Union Minister Prakash Javadekar made the announcement following a cabinet meeting today. More importantly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the cabinet meeting.
Union Minister Prakash Javadekar called the decision “a Diwali gift” during the Cabinet briefing. “This will bring cheer to the working class ahead of Diwali, the central government has been announcing steps for many sectors,” he added.
As many as 50 lakh government employees will benefit from the move. Not only this, but 65 lakh pensioners will also avail this benefit due to a hike in Dearness Relief. The hike will be in effect from July.
Javadekar further said that the Dearness Allowance was raised from 12 to 17 per cent to compensate for price rise. This bold move will cost the government Rs. 15,909.35 crore.
“This will bring cheer to the working class ahead of Diwali, the central government has been announcing steps for many sectors,” Javadekar said. “This is the highest ever 5 percentage points increase in DA in one go by the central government,” he further added.
Keeping the festival in mind, the government took the step on the basis of the recommendations of the 7th central Pay Commission.
Chiefly, the Dearness Allowance is given as an adjustment to compensate for the increase in the cost of living due to inflation. The Dearness Allowance is a percentage of the employee’s basic salary.
