Chhattisgarh govt declares 5% DA hike for state employees

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Friday announced a 5% rise in dearness allowance (DA) for state government employees, bringing the total to 33%. According to the official, the raise will benefit almost 3.80 lakh state government employees.

Taking to Twitter, Baghel said, “The state government has decided to increase the DA by 5 per cent for officers and employees of the state. The hike will be effective from this month (October 1, 2022)." 

The official stated that the state government has previously increased the DA for public employees by 6%, making them eligible for 28% DA under the 7th Pay Commission. According to him, the DA's 5% pay increase means that state government employees who are paid on the 7th Pay Commission scale now make 33% of their wage. In response, the state government increased the DA for workers whose incomes don't meet the 6th Pay Commission scale by 12%. They will earn 201 percent DA as opposed to 189 percent, the official claims.

He stated that all related departments, the head of the revenue board, divisional commissioners, and collectors have received a circular from the state's finance department on the rise in DA. According to the official, the hike will result in a yearly burden to the exchequer of an additional ₹930 crore.

The Dearness Allowance (DA) rate paid to employees of the Central Government and Central Autonomous Bodies has been raised by up to 15%, according to an official memorandum of the Department of Expenditure (DoE) dated 12th October 2022. For employees of the Central Government and Central Autonomous Bodies who continue to receive their salaries in accordance with the 5th and 6th Central Pay Commissions, respectively, the Ministry of Finance has raised the DA rates by up to 15%. Employees who receive their pay in accordance with the 5th Pay Commission now get DA at a 15% higher rate than before, from 381% to 396% of basic pay. The commencement date for this is July 1, 2022.

On the other hand, the DA rate for employees receiving their pay in accordance with the 6th Pay Commission has increased by 9%, moving from 203% to 212% of basic pay.