DA news: Assam, West Bengal, Telangana, Sikkim, Kerala — Check full list of states with dearness allowance hikes in 2026
In line with the 7th Central Pay Commission (CPC) recommendations, the government hikes dearness allowance (DA) biannually using data from the All-India Consumer Price Index (AICPI). Over 1 crore beneficiaries, comprising about 50 lakh central government employees and nearly 65 lakh pensioners, including defence and railway personnel and retirees, gain from DA and Dearness Relief (DR) hikes.
DA is a percentage of employees' basic pay that aims to mitigate the impact of the rising cost of living and inflation. Notably, announcements from the Centre come in March and October, with rollouts in January and July. The last hike was announced in April this year, when the Finance Ministry increased DA from 58% to 60% of basic salary, effective from 1 January 2026.
Meanwhile, DA revision is also under discussion by the 8th CPC, which is expected to submit its final recommendations around 18 months after its constitution, by May 2027 at the latest.
Following the Finance Ministry's announcement, the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) announced revised DA and DR for workmen and officer employees across levels for the months of May, June and July 2026. It hiked basic salaries between ₹48,000 and ₹1,17,000 and DA from ₹435 to ₹1,050. Later, the Indian Railways also announced a 2% hike in DA and DR for staff and pensioners.
Here's a look at the full list of DA hikes announced by states so far:
- Kerala hiked DA and dearness relief (DR) by two percentage points, from 35% to 37%, be paid with the October 2026 salary, disbursed in November. The hike primarily covers state government employees, teachers, full-time contingent employees and local government staff. It also includes state service pensioners, family pensioners, and eligible ex-gratia pensioners and their families. This follows an earlier increase in DA and DR from 25% to 35% in February 2026.
- Telangana released two DA and DR installments for state government employees and pensioners across cadres — revisions of 3.64% and 2.73%, respectively, set to be paid with the October salary to be disbursed on 1 November this year. The release is a partial payment of the 15.43% in DA instalments pending since the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi government.
- Sikkim in August announced that the state government is hiking DA and DR under 7th CPC by 2% each from 58% to 60% and on 1 October, the state also announced hikes under the 6th CPC by 5% from 257% to 262%— both come into with effect from 1 January 2026. The state employs about 50,000 staff and pensioners.
- Punjab has notified an 8% DA hike for state government employees and pensioners, effective from 1 September, PTI reported. “The enhanced DA will provide additional financial support to employees and pensioners at a time when household expenses and the cost of essential commodities have increased,” as per an official statement from the chief minister's office. As per a CMO statement, the DA hike will be rolled out in two instalments of 4% each, with the benefit to be reflected in their salaries from 1 October.
- Andhra Pradesh approved two long-pending DA revisions — giving a combined 4.55% DA hike for state government employees, local body personnel and university staff. It will be implemented from September 2026 and disbursed with the salary released in October this year. The first installment of 2.73% hike, which takes DA from 37.31% to 40.04% of basic pay comes retroactively in effect from July 2024; and the second installment of 1.82%, takes DA from 40.04% to 41.86% of basic pay comes retroactively in effect from January 2025. The arrears will be released in structured instalments in 2027 and 2028 salaries.
- Arunachal Pradesh hiked DA and DR for its employees by 2%, effective from 1 January 2026. DA in basic pay is now up to 60% from 58% and will be implemented for 69,248 regular employees.
- In May, Assam approved a 2-percentage-point increase in DA and DR, up from 58% to 60% with immediate effect, benefitting more than 8 lakh serving state government employees and pensioners.
- Bihar also announced that employees and pensioners under the 6th Pay Commission will get a 5-percentage-point hike in DA and DR, i.e. DA will be raised from 257% to 262%, effective from 1 January. For employees under the 5th CPC, DA has been increased by 9 percentage points, from 474%to 483%, and for those under the 7th CPC, it has been raised from 58% to 60%.
- Maharashtra approved the payment of ₹800 crore in DA arrears for state government employees under the 5th, 6th, and 7th central pay commissions for November and December 2025, and January 2026. It also approved 2% increase in DR for retired All India Services officers.
- Odisha announced a 2% increase in DA for state government employees and pensioners, raising it from 58% to 60%, effective 1 January, as per a statement from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO). Around 8.5 lakh state government employees and pensioners are expected to benefit from the announcement.
- Tamil Nadu hiked DA by 2%, effective from 1 January 2026, for state government employees, pensioners, and teachers, raising the allocation to 60% of basic salary. The state will bear an additional annual expenditure of ₹1,230 crore.
- Uttar Pradesh, on 21 May, announced a 2% hike in DA and DR for state government employees and pensioners, effective from 1 January — up to 60% of basic pay from 58% — benefiting around 16 lakh Uttar Pradesh government employees, teachers, and pensioners.
- In June, the West Bengal government hiked DA and DR by 20% for state government employees and pensioners, with effect from October, taking the component to 38% of basic salary. According to the notification, those employees still drawing salaries under the 5th CPC will get DA at 223%, up from the existing 171%, from 1 October. Further, pensioners and family pensioners whose pensions are yet to be revised under the Revision of Pay and Allowances (ROPA) 2009 rules will also receive DR at 223% until their revised pensions are implemented, it added.
Jocelyn Fernandes is a journalist and editor with nearly 13 years of experience covering the business, corporate, economy and markets beats in news.<br> As chief content producer for around three years at Livemint (Hindustan Times), Jocelyn publishes breaking stories, explainers, features and live blogs on a range of business and economy topics, including the Budget, corporate developments, stock markets, income tax, money and personal finance, cryptocurrency, government policy, impact of US tariffs, international developments and more.<br> Jocelyn's writing philosophy is focused on delivering news in an accurate and accessible format for readers. She thus focuses her news coverage on explainers and FAQs in order to breakdown business, corporate, economic, and policy topics that are of importance to everyday readers.<br> She holds a Bachelors in Mass Media (BMM) and Post Graduate Diploma (PGD) in Journalism and Communication and has previously written for online business and markets news site Moneycontrol (Network18), Business-to-business (B2B) trade publications — the industry magazines Power Today and Solar Today (ASAPP Media), and the national news agency United News of India (UNI).<br> Outside of work, Jocelyn keeps up-to-date with local and international news, enjoys reading fiction books, novels and short stories, and enjoys movies, travelling and art. <br> She can be found on X and LinkedIn, and reached by email: <a href="jocelyn.fernandes@htdigital.in">jocelyn.fernandes@htdigital.in</a> <br> X/ Twitter handle: <a href="https://x.com/scribeJocelyn">@scribeJocelyn</a> <br> LinkedIn: <a href="https://in.linkedin.com/in/jocelyn-fernandes-journalist">LinkedIn</a>
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