Telangana Clears Two Pending DAs, Gives 6.37% Hike for Staff, Pensioners
DA rises to 40.04% of basic pay, with revised payments from November
Hyderabad: The Telangana government on Wednesday issued orders clearing two pending dearness allowance (DA) instalments for government employees and pensioners, raising the DA by a cumulative 6.37 percentage points.
The DA has been increased from 33.67 per cent to 37.31 per cent of basic pay with effect from January 1, 2024, an increase of 3.64 percentage points. It has been further raised to 40.04 per cent with effect from July 1, 2024, an increase of 2.73 percentage points.
The revised DA will be paid along with the October 2026 salary and pension, payable on November 1.
The two instalments will impose an additional annual burden of about 3,057 crore on the state exchequer. Of this, the 3.64 per cent instalment will cost 1,747 crore and the 2.73 per cent instalment 1,310 crore.
The orders also provide for payment of arrears according to employees' eligibility. In the case of employees covered by the General Provident Fund (GPF), the arrears will be credited to their GPF accounts.
Employees retiring on or before January 31, 2027, will receive the arrears in 33 equal monthly instalments, as they are exempted from GPF subscription during the last four months of service.
For employees covered under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), 10 per cent of the DA arrears for the period from January 2024 to September 2026 will be credited to their PRAN accounts along with the government's contribution. The remaining 90 per cent will be paid in 33 equal monthly instalments beginning November 1.
Telangana Employees Joint Action Committee (TGEJAC) chairman Maram Jagadishwar and secretary-general Eluri Srinivas Rao welcomed the decision and thanked Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy.
They urged the government to address other pending demands, including obtaining the Pay Revision Commission report and implementing 51 per cent fitment, increasing the monthly clearance of pending bills from 1,000 crore to 2,000 crore, and releasing three more pending DA instalments due from January 1, 2025, July 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026.
