7th pay Commission: Central government employees may get pay hike salaries, arrears on March 30, says report

7th Pay Commission: Central government employees could get their increased salaries for the month, a day early on March 30, as March 31 is a Sunday, as per a Jagran report. 

It should be noted however that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has asked banks to work on March 31, despite it being a Sunday, because it is the last day of the financial year.

Also Read | 7th Pay Commission: Government employees likely to get 4% DA hike in March 2024

The dearness allowance (DA) for employees and pensioners is worked out based on the latest Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers (CPI-IW) brought out by the Labour Bureau every month. Thus, the increase in DA will be per the accepted formula, based on the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission.

4% Increase in Dearness Allowance Approved

Earlier, the government had sanctioned a 4 percent rise in DA for central employees. This increment, effective in January 2024, elevates the allowance from 46 percent to 50 percent. Consequently, employees are entitled to arrears for January and February.

As the DA reached 50 percent, there was also a corresponding increase in House Rent Allowance (HRA). Depending on the city's categorisation, employees stand to receive up to 30 percent HRA.

Also Read | DA hiked to 50%: Will it lead to higher basic salary for central government employees? Key questions answered

Further, the DA surge also triggers an augmentation in various special allowances for central employees. These include childcare allowance, child education allowance, hostel subsidy, travel allowance on transfer, dress allowance, gratuity ceiling, and mileage allowance. However, employees must claim these allowances accordingly.

In October 2023, the Cabinet had last increased the DA for government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) for pensioners by four per cent. With that four per cent hike, the DA was increased from 42 per cent to 46 per cent.

The decision benefitted 48.67 lakh central government employees and 67.95 lakh pensioners. Earlier, Diwali bonuses for Group C and non-gazetted Group B level officials, including paramilitary forces, were approved by the government. For 2022–2023, the Finance Ministry had set a limit of ₹7,000 for the calculation of non–productivity linked bonuses (ad hoc bonuses) for central government employees.