Good News for Central Government Employees, DA and DR will Increase By this Much

DR Hike News: Millions of central government employees and pensioners are awaiting the next increase in dearness allowance (DA) before the implementation of the 8th Pay Commission. It is expected that the DA increase for January 2026 will be announced in the first week of March, possibly before Holi. Typically, the central government announces the January DA revision in March and the July revision in October or November, around Diwali.

This DA increase is considered more significant because the term of the 7th Pay Commission officially ended on December 31, 2025. This will be the first time that DA will be increased after the expiry of the 7th Pay Commission. DR will also be increased in line with DA. Furthermore, employees are closely monitoring every update related to the 8th Pay Commission, further increasing the significance of this increase.

Why is this DA hike significant?

After a 3 percent increase for the July-December 2025 period, dearness allowance has reached 58 percent. It is now estimated that the DA could increase by 2 percent in the January 2026 revision, taking it to 60 percent. If this happens, it will be one of the lowest January increases in years. Previously, in 2007, 2018, and 2025, only 2 percent increases were seen in January. However, in January 2000, the increase was only 1 percent, which is considered the lowest ever.

While a 2 percent increase may seem small to employees and pensioners, it will directly impact the salaries and pensions of millions of employees and pensioners. This increase is economically significant before the implementation of the new Pay Commission.

What will happen to DA after the 8th Pay Commission?

This DA increase comes at a time when the country is moving towards the 8th Central Pay Commission. The government announced the 8th Pay Commission in January 2025 and notified its Terms of Reference on November 3, 2025. The Commission’s recommendations are yet to be finalized, but initial indications suggest the fitment factor could be between 1.83 and 2.46. This is expected to result in a salary increase of approximately 30 to 34 percent, and it could be implemented from January 1, 2026.

According to reports, dearness allowance will start at zero after the implementation of the new Pay Commission. This has led to discussions among employees about the impact of DA increases during this transition period. The government has clarified that there is no proposal to halt DA increases until the new pay structure is implemented. This means that dearness allowance increases will continue until the new Pay Commission is implemented.