8th Pay Commission: Big news for govt employees. Recently, a controversy arose concerning the Eighth Pay Commission, which suggested that the government was planning to leave out 6.9 million pensioners from its scope. The All India Defence Employees Federation (AIDEF) voiced its concerns and reached out to the government, highlighting significant inconsistencies in the Terms of Reference (ToR). Nevertheless, the government has clarified all misunderstandings. The Finance Ministry has confirmed that the 6.9 million pensioners will indeed benefit from the Eighth Pay Commission.
How many individuals will benefit?
Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary stated in a written response on Monday, December 8, 2025, “There are approximately 50.14 lakh central employees and around 69 lakh pensioners in the country who will be directly impacted by the 8th CPC. Given the substantial expenditure involved, the government also mentioned that once the commission’s recommendations are approved, the necessary funds for their implementation will be allocated in the budget.
When will the 8th Pay Commission take effect?
Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary also dispelled rumors regarding the Eighth Pay Commission being put into action from January 1, 2026. In a written reply, he stated, “The government will determine the date for the implementation of the 8th Pay Commission.” In fact, when asked if the central government was gearing up to implement the 8th CPC starting January 1, 2026, he clarified that no decision has been made regarding the date yet. This comes at a time when there is much discussion among employees about the potential implementation of the 8th CPC in 2026.
The Minister of State for Finance informed that the Eighth Pay Commission has already been constituted and its Terms of Reference (ToR) has also been issued by the Finance Ministry on November 3, 2025. Chaudhary said that the Commission will decide its own process and methodology for preparing its recommendations.
These 5 questions were brought up by the MPs
Actually, MPs NK Premachandran, Thiru Thanga Tamilselvan, Dr. Ganapathy Rajkumar P, and Dharmendra Yadav raised a bunch of questions about the Eighth Pay Commission, which mainly focused on these five:
Will the government roll out the 8th Pay Commission starting in 2026?
Has the Terms of Reference (ToR) been finalized?
Will there be funds set aside for this in the 2026-27 budget?
Has the Commission talked to employees, pensioners, and states?
When can we expect the commission to provide its recommendations, and when will the government act on them?
In response to these inquiries, the Minister of State for Finance emphasized that a decision regarding the implementation date will be made later. He also mentioned that the Commission might take around 18 months from the notification date to deliver its report. For now, the government has confirmed that work on the Eighth Pay Commission is underway, but there’s no final word on its implementation starting January 1, 2026.