Diwali Cheer For Govt Employees As Centre Raises DA, DR By 3%

The Centre has approved a 3% hike in Dearness Allowance (DA) for Central Government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) for pensioners, raising the rates from 60% to 63% with effect from July 1, 2026.

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the decision on Wednesday. The revised DA will benefit serving Central Government employees, while pensioners will receive the corresponding increase in DR. Both are calculated on basic pay or pension.

The revision will also cover employees drawing salaries under the older pay scales of the 5th and 6th Central Pay Commissions, reported Hindustan Times.

Financial Implications And Beneficiaries

The combined annual cost of the DA and DR increase to the exchequer is estimated at ₹10,016 crore, according to the report.

Around 48 lakh Central Government employees and 68 lakh pensioners are expected to benefit from the revision, taking the total number of beneficiaries to approximately 1.16 crore.

The increase is intended to provide additional financial relief to employees and pensioners amid rising prices.

Changes Under The 5th And 6th Pay Commissions

The government has also revised DA rates for employees covered under the 5th and 6th Central Pay Commission scales.

For employees under the 6th Pay Commission, DA has been increased from 262% to 269% of basic pay, a rise of seven percentage points.

For employees under the 5th Pay Commission, the rate has been raised from 483% to 497% of basic pay, an increase of 14% points. Both revisions will take effect from July 1, 2026.

Other Cabinet Decisions

The Centre also announced three other approvals alongside the DA and DR revision:

• PM Viksit Gram Swaraj Yojana: An allocation of ₹7,395 crore.

• Container manufacturing: A ₹10,000 crore promotion scheme.

• Khelo India: A ₹1,856 crore scheme for sports goods and manufacturing.