As the employees went on an indefinite strike, the Karnataka government increased their dearness allowance. On the other hand, the West Bengal administration announced an increase in the employee dearness allowance during the presentation of the state budget. The state governments of these two states gave their staff a present for Holi.
According to sources, central government employees would also reportedly get their 18-month DA arrears in eight payments. Yet, the government has not yet published any official statements.
Karnataka:
Basavaraj Bommai, the chief minister of Karnataka, offered a temporary wage increase of 17% last week in an effort to appease the state's disgruntled workers. The declaration came as government workers engaged in protests, calling for revisions to pay based on the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission and the elimination of the National Pension System (NPS).
Bommai provided specifics, stating that the state government had previously formed a 7th Pay Commission and that following discussions with the Association, an agreement had been reached. "As a temporary solution, we will give government workers a 17% raise. Orders are being given out, according to a statement from Bommai.
Bommai stated that a committee will be formed under the extra chief secretary to explore the reinstatement of the previous pension scheme when speaking about the New Pension Scheme (NPS). After two months, it will be asked to give its report.
West Bengal:
The West Bengal administration announced a 3% increase in the dearness allowance (DA) for all state employees and retirees during the presentation of the state budget on February 15. Chandrima Bhattacharya, the state minister of finance for West Bengal, presented the state's budget for the fiscal year 2023–2024. (independent charge).
The state government's announcement follows previous demonstrations by state officials who were demanding unpaid dearness allowances. The state government employees complained that they hadn't received their revised dearness allowance after the seventh pay commission's implementation from Mamata Banerjee's administration during the demonstration.
As a result of not receiving their dearness allowance, West Bengal government employees have gone on a hunger strike, according to BJP MP Saumitra Khan, who raised the issue in the Lok Sabha.
DA Hike for Central Government Employees:
In the meantime, the Centre is set to boost the dearness allowance of over 1 crore employees and retirees by roughly 4% after March 8, a report by Financial Express revealed. On the precise day when the Centre announced the DA raise, there is, however, no formal confirmation. The central government workers must thus wait till the formal directive is issued in this respect.
The most recent increase will raise the dearness allowance to 42% from 38%. The most recent Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers (CPI-IW), which is released each month by the Labour Bureau, a division of the Labour Ministry, is used to determine the dearness allowance for workers and retirees.
