The Bihar government on Wednesday approved an increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) for state government employees and pensioners.
The meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary at the state secretariat in Patna and attended by all 34 ministers.
How much will be the Dearness Allowance hike?
- Employees and pensioners under the 6th Central Pay Commission will get a 5 percentage point hike in Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief. That means the DA will be raised from 257% to 262%.
- For employees under the 5th Central Pay Commission, DA has been increased by 9 percentage points, from 474%to 483%,
- Those under the 7th Central Pay Commission, it has been raised from 58 per cent to 60 per cent.
From will it be effective?
The new DA hike will be effective January 1, 2026
This marks one of the first major financial decisions taken by the Samrat Choudhary government, which assumed office on April 15 after former Chief Minister Nitish Kumar resigned to contest the Rajya Sabha elections.
The meeting is also significant as it came just days after a major expansion at Gandhi Maidan on May 7, where 32 ministers — including JDU leader and former CM Nitish Kumar’s son Nishant Kumar — took oath.
Choudhary is the first BJP leader to hold the chief minister’s post in Bihar.
DA hike in Bengal too?
The second cabinet meeting of the West Bengal government will be held on May 18, during which major decisions related to Dearness Allowance (DA), implementation of the Seventh Pay Commission is likely to be discussed, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Monday.
State government employees have long been demanding DA on a par with central staff.
The issue is currently pending before the Supreme Court. With the change in government, employees are hopeful that the new administration will announce DA in line with central rates.
The government is also likely to consider the formation of the Seventh Pay Commission, a move that could lead to a revision in salaries of state government employees.
The CM indicated that a decision on granting Dearness Allowance (DA) to state government employees and pensioners at central rates may also be announced at Monday’s cabinet meeting.