Dearness Allowance: DA/DR delay creates ‘discontent’ among govt employees & pensioners, NC-JCM writes to Cabinet Secretary

Concerns are rising among central government employees and pensioners over the delay in announcing the Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) instalment due as of January 1, 2026.

In a formal communication dated April 13, 2026, Secretary of the National Council (Staff Side), Joint Consultative Machinery (JCM), Shiva Gopal Mishra, has written to the Cabinet Secretary highlighting the issue and urging immediate action.

“You are well aware that so far the DA/DR instalment due to the Central Government employees and pensioners w.e.f January is declared during the last week of March every year. Unfortunately this year so far the Government has not declared DA/DR due from 01/01/2026. This has created discontentment and apprehensions amongst the Central Government employees & Pensioners,” the letter states.

He further urged the government to expedite the process, adding, “We request you to kindly intervene in the matter and arrange for declaration of DA/DR instalment due from 01/01/2026 without further delaying the matter.”

As per the formula approved under the 7th Pay Commission, the DA hike is linked to the Consumer Price Index (CPI-IW). Based on current estimates, employees are expecting an increase of around 2 percentage points from the existing 58% of basic salary to approximately 60%.

The central government revises DA and DR twice a year, in January and July, to help offset the impact of inflation. While the revision is effective from these months, the announcements are typically made later, with the January cycle usually cleared by the end of March.

A delay in the announcement affects not only current salary calculations but also the disbursement of arrears.