7th Pay Commission: The DA of central employees has increased by 3% to 53% and since the announcement of this increase, discussions have intensified whether DA will be merged into the basic salary?
7th Pay Commission: The Narendra Modi government at the Center had recently announced an increase in the dearness allowance of central employees (DA Hike) and increased it by 3 percent. After this, the dearness allowance they get increased from 50 percent to 53 percent. Meanwhile, discussions also intensified whether this increased DA will be merged with the basic salary of the employees before the revision of dearness allowance in January 2025? Let us know what is the latest update on this matter…
Discussions on merging DA intensified
Giving a big gift to the central employees from the central government, DA was increased from 50% to 53% recently and it is effective from July 1, 2024. After this increase, discussions started about the possibility of merging DA with the basic salary. Speculations are being made about whether dearness allowance and dearness relief allowance will be automatically merged with the basic salary.
According to a report published on Business Today, the government has maintained its stand in this matter that dearness allowance will not be merged with the basic salary, even if it crosses the limit of 50%. Quoting a senior official, the report says that during the 5th Pay Commission, it was recommended to merge dearness allowance with the basic salary if it exceeds 50%. But after this the issue was not included.
What are the experts saying on this issue?
The report has also cited several experts who have ruled out the possibility of merging DA with the basic salary. According to Vishal Gehrana, Principal Associate of Karanjawala & Co. and Supreme Court Advocate on Record, the Fifth Pay Commission recommended merging it with the basic salary to simplify the salary structure and ensure that it is consistent with the basic salary. It was seen as a way to avoid DA Hike indefinitely. However, it was not included under the 6th and 7th Central Pay Commissions.
According to other experts, Debjani Aich, Partner, IndusLaw, termed such discussions as speculation and said that the increased DA will not be included in the basic salary of the central government employee. Sanjeev Kumar, Partner, Luthra & Luthra Law Office, India, also said that no such measure was recommended in the 7th Pay Commission report.
Now when will the DA of central employees increase?
The government revises DA and DR twice a year for employees and pensioners. Usually these announcements are made in the months of March and September-October of the year. Which are effective from January and July respectively. With this, central employees get the salary of April and October with arrears of two to three months. Now talking about the next increase in DA, the new DA Hike can be announced before the festival of Holi in March 2025.
