Govt to increase dearness allowance to 107 Percent-- Press News
“The average rate of retail inflation for industrial workers from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014 works out to be 7.25 per cent. Thus the Central government will hike dearness allowance for it employees by 7 per cent,” an official said.
He
said the Finance Ministry will now put a Cabinet proposal for approval of 7 per
cent DA hike from July 1 this year as the revised Consumer Price
Index-Industrial Workers data for June was released by Labour Ministry on
Saturday.
With increase in DA, the pensioners will also
gain as the benefit provided to them as dearness relief will be hiked to 107
per cent of basic pay.
The previous UPA government had increased DA
to 100 per cent from 90 per cent with effect from January 1, 2014, on February
28 on the basis of agreed formula for revision of the allowance.
However, the central government employees’
union is not very enthused by the 7 per cent hike in the dearness allowance as
their long pending demand of merger of DA with basic pay has not been given heed
by 7th Pay Commission and the government.
“The erosion of value of wages is unbearable at 50
per cent dearness allowance. Now it will be 107 per cent. It is high time to
merge DA with basic pay to provide relief to employees,” Confederation of
Central Government Employees’ President KKN Kutty told PTI.
“We had summited our memorandum in this regard
to 7th Pay Commission. They forwarded it to Central Government. We have
apprised about the issue to the newly elected NDA government.
But no decision has been taken so far,” he
said.
With merger of DA with basic pay, the salary
and allowances paid in proportion of basic pay are increased. As per earlier
practise DA was merged with basic pay once it breached 50 per cent mark. But
the 6th Pay Commission has disallowed that.
