The Karnataka government made a significant announcement on Saturday, fulfilling a longstanding demand from its employees and a campaign promise from the Congress party.
They decided to increase the Dearness Allowance (DA) for state employees by 3.75%, raising it from the existing 35% to 38.75%.
Additionally, lecturers on the UGC/AICTE/ICAR scale and judicial officers will see a 4% hike in their DA. This decision will require an extra expenditure of ₹1,109 crore for the state government.
Notably, back in March of the same year, the previous BJP government had temporarily increased the basic salary by up to 17% due to pressure from employee unions. They had also established a committee to evaluate the feasibility of returning to the Old Pension Scheme (OPS).
Furthermore, on the same day, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah directed higher education officials to prioritize filling Kalyana Karnataka and other outstanding vacancies. He emphasized the need for a uniform calendar of events for universities to avoid inconveniencing students seeking admission.
Siddaramaiah also reviewed the activities of the Kannada Study Chair at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), an initiative from his previous tenure. He provided further instructions to advance its activities, underscoring his commitment to the promotion of Kannada language and culture.
