How minimum salary in 8th Pay Commission can jump from ₹18,000 to ₹33,000 for Govt employees

3 min read | Updated on July 25, 2025, 17:28 IST

SUMMARY

8th pay commission minimum salary calculation: The current minimum pay of employees, as per the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission (CPC), is ₹18,000. It may jump to ₹33,000.

8th CPC may increase minimum pay to ₹33,000. | Representational image source:' Shutterstock

8th Central Pay Commission minimum salary calculation: The 8th Pay Commission may recommend a minimum initial salary of around ₹33,000 per month, an increase of ₹15,000 per month from the current minimum pay of ₹18,000, for Central Government employees, according to a report by Kotak Institutional Equities (KIE).

The report estimates that the upcoming pay panel may recommend a fitment factor of 1.8, resulting in a pay hike of around 13% in real terms over the current salaries.

The current minimum pay of employees, as per the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission (CPC), is ₹18,000. The 7th CPC had recommended a fitment factor of 2.57 over the 6th CPC wages, resulting in a 14.3% hike in wages in real terms.

8th CPC calculation: Minimum pay estimates across CPCs

The following table shows the calculation of the estimated minimum salary hike by KIE. Employees may expect the 8th CPC to recommend the minimum salary and fitment factor shown in the table.

The calculation takes into account average monthly basic household spends, which the 8th CPC will also consider while recommending the hike in minimum pay:

Item	Jan 2006 (6CPC)*	Jan 2016 (7CPC)*	Jan 2026 (KIE)*
Rice/wheat	₹770	₹1,108	₹1,829
Pulses (tur/urad/moong)	₹288	₹704	₹1,057
Vegetables	₹270	₹1,177	₹2,285
Fruits	₹324	₹693	₹1,144
Milk	₹432	₹679	₹1,019
Sugar/jaggery	₹120	₹188	₹272
Edible oil	₹180	₹410	₹657
Fish, meat, egg	₹1,080	₹3,059	₹5,565
Detergents, etc.	₹200	₹291	₹423
Clothing	₹440	₹907	₹1,453
Fuel, electricity, water charges	₹827	₹2,305	₹3,926
Other expenditures (incl. housing)	₹548	₹5,946	₹12,259
Calculated minimum pay	₹5,479	₹17,469	₹31,889
Minimum pay (incl. DA/grade pay)	₹6,660	₹17,993	₹32,697
Recommended minimum pay	₹6,660	₹18,000	₹33,000
Govt. approved minimum pay	₹7,000	₹18,000	—
Fitment factor (miminum pay level)	1.86	2.57	1.83
Pay increase (nominal %)	86%	157%	83%
Pay increase (real %)	54%	14%	13%

*Monthly household spending (₹/month). Source: KIE report

What's the current status of the 8th CPC?

As of now, the Government has yet to notify the terms of reference of the 8th Pay Commission. The appointment of the chairman and members of the 8th CPC is also pending.

Once the commission is formally set up, it may take another 12-18 months to submit its recommendations. Read more details about the 8th CPC timeline here.