Tripura approves 5% DA hike; 200k employees, pensioners to benefit

The Tripura cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal to increase 5 per cent DA to state government employees and pensioners with effect from November 1, a minister said.

Around 2 lakh employees and pensioners will benefit from the additional 5 per cent DA taking the total dearness allowance to 30 per cent, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Sushanta Chowdhury told reporters.

The council of ministers approved a proposal to hike DA by 5 per cent for the government employees and pensioners with effect from November 1. The state government will have to spend an additional Rs 500 crore annually for the increased DA," the minister said after the cabinet meeting.

The decision was taken despite tight fiscal conditions and the government's spending of Rs 1,700 crore on restoration work after the devastating flood in the northeastern state, he said.

The move to increase 5 per cent DA was aimed at reducing the gap of the dearness allowance between employees of the Centre and state government, Chowdhury said.

At present, central government employees receive 53 per cent DA, he said.

Chowdhury said the cabinet also gave its nod to another proposal to increase ration allowance for Tripura State Rifles (TSR) from Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 per month and uniform grant from Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 per annum.

Apart from the hike in ration and uniform allowances, the cabinet also allocated Rs 5 crore for repairing TSR posts in the state. Each battalion of TSR will get Rs 5 lakh to set up gymnasium and 240 TSR personnel will also be given ad-hoc promotion due for long years, he added.  Punjab govt hikes 4% dearness allowance for employees, pensioners

The Punjab government on Wednesday announced a 4 per cent hike in the dearness allowance for the state government employees and pensioners.

"In a Diwali bonanza to families of more than 6.50 lakh employees and pensioners of the state government, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, on Wednesday, announced a hike of 4 per cent in their dearness allowance," an official statement said here.

Mann granted approval to give 4 per cent Dearness Allowance (DA) to the employees and pensioners, with effect from November 1, thereby enhancing it to 42 per cent from 38 per cent, the statement quoted a spokesperson of the Chief Minister's Office as saying.

Meanwhile, the chief minister said this decision will benefit more than 6.50 lakh employees, pensioners and their families.

The employees are a critical segment of the state administration and safeguarding their interests and ensuring their welfare was the government's top priority, he added.