DA Hike: Ahead of festivas, Govt Increase 3% increase in DA

DA Hike: Employees of the Maharashtra government are in for some good news. The dearness allowance (DA) for Maharashtra government employees and other eligible workers has been raised by three percent. This adjustment brings the DA up to 58 percent.

On Wednesday, Minister of State for Finance Ashish Jaiswal informed the Assembly that this increase will take effect from July 2025. The updated dearness allowance will be disbursed in cash starting this month. Arrears covering the period from July 2025 to October 2025 will be paid out during the Gudi Padwa celebration in March 2026. A separate notification will be issued concerning arrears from November 2025 to January 2026.

He also mentioned that this decision will positively impact approximately 5.16 lakh state government employees and around 8.72 lakh pensioners in Maharashtra. Earlier, on Friday, the Kerala government declared that the dearness allowance (DA) for state government and local body employees, as well as teachers and staff of aided schools, colleges, and polytechnics, would be raised from 25 to 35 percent. Full-time contingent employees will also benefit from a similar increase, with the new allowances set to be included in the March salary, as per a government order.

The order specifies that the revised DA will extend to part-time teachers, part-time contingent employees, and re-employed pensioners, depending on their salaries. Comparable increases have been authorized in dearness relief (DR) for state service, family, ex-gratia, and ex-gratia family pensioners. The additional amount will be disbursed along with the April pension.

Last year, in February, the Maharashtra government, under Eknath Shinde ‘s leadership, increased the dearness allowance for state employees. The dearness allowance was increased by 12 percent. Employees across sectors in India are expected to get an average salary hike of 9.1 per cent this year, slightly higher than last year’s 8.9 per cent, a survey report estimated on Tuesday. Citing its ‘Annual Salary Growth and Turnover Survey 2025-26’, global professional services company Aon said the projected salary hike of 9.1 per cent this year is slightly higher than the actual 8.9 per cent growth recorded in 2025. The 32nd edition of Aon’s survey is based on an analysis of data from over 1,400 organisations operating across 45 industry sectors in the country.