Unions write to PM, seeking restoration of DA/DR

Many employees unions have sent letters to the prime minister, urging to lift the freezing of the dearness allowance (DA) and the dearness relief (DR). The DA and the DR has been frozen at 17% since January last year. The representatives were central secretariat workers, teachers, corporation workers, those employed with the central public works department were among wrote to the prime minister underlining a five-point demand including reinstating DA and DR. 

The unions in their letter demanded “Payment of all the instalments of Dearness Allowance/Dearness Relief due with effect from the month of 1st January 2020 in the month of July 2021 to all employees and pensioners reeling under the high price-rise".

The Centre’s decision to defer three instalments of dearness allowance, for employees, and dearness relief, for pensioners, from January 2020 to July 2021 helped save an estimated ₹37,530 crore. State governments likely saved an additional ₹82,566 crores by freezing the payments.

Also read: Rahul Gandhi terms the DA freeze as a crime to loot ₹37,500 crore

With the 18-month period coming to an end on 30 June, government employees are seeking a restoration of the inflation-linked pay hikes.

The unions also urged PM Modi to consider a concept called “One Nation, One Pay" so as to put an end to disputes coming up every now and then around pay disparity at various levels of employment.

The government workers unions also requested the transfer of Rs 5 million in insurance directly to the bank accounts of families of deceased corona warriors among the employees.

Also read: Sitaram Yechury demands DA restoration