As we all know that the 7th Pay Commission is a committee set up by the Government of India to revise the salary structures and benefits of government employees, including civil servants, army personnel and police officers.
The Commission was constituted by the Central Government in February 2014, and it submitted its report in November 2015, which was implemented from January 1, 2016. The revision in pay and allowances was based on factors like inflation, minimum wage, and the cost of living.
The recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission led to a significant increase in the salaries of government employees including other allowances as well. The 7th Pay Commission mandates increasing dearness allowance twice a year for government employees.
We have recently seen a hike in the DA for public sector employees which came into effect from 1 January, 2023. After July 2022, the DA has been increased twice by 4 per cent each, hence, DA has increased from 34 to 42 per cent.
Now, the public sector employees are again waiting for an increase in their salary after getting a hike in their dearness allowance as per the report. In July, the central government employees are expecting a DA hike. The 7th Pay Commission says that the DA is to be announced twice a year in January and July.
As per the media reports, nearly 48 lakhs of central govt. employees and 70 lakh pension holders are likely to receive this benefit.
The DA is generally decided depending on the CPI-IW index. It is announced every month by the Labor Bureau. Depending on the CPI-IW index data, the Centre concludes whether the DA is to be increased or not.
