After 8-month wait, govt employees to receive 3% increased DA and arrears

MUMBAI: Around 1.4 million government employees, waiting from July 2024 for their increased dearness allowance (DA) of 3%, had threatened on Monday to stage a protest on March 6 during the budget session. But after warning letters from several employee associations, the state government on Tuesday finally issued an order to pay the dues totalling more than ₹1,200 crore in the employees’ February salary. ‘Approval has been given to pay the increased 3% DA with arrears from the month of July 2024 to government employees in the state,’ it said.

In the run-up to the order, the employees had also sought an appointment with finance minister Ajit Pawar and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis with a demand to resolve the issue. On Sunday, a meeting of the Maharashtra State Government Employees Confederation (MSGEC) was held at Nashik, in which office-bearers from all districts participated. The issue of the pending implementation of the DA and the payout of arrears was discussed as were other issues like the revised pension scheme.

The contention of the employees was that the thousands of crores worth of freebies distributed by the ruling Mahayuti alliance before the assembly elections were responsible for their not getting their dues. Vishwas Katkar, general secretary of the Maharashtra State Government Employees Confederation, said, “The DA was increased in July, and during this time the state government announced various schemes like Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin, Annapurna and free power for farmers. The total burden of these announcements was over ₹90,000 crore. Due to this burden, government employees did not receive their increased DA.”

The central government increases its employees’ DA every year in January and July. Subsequently, the Maharashtra government too increases DA in the same proportion for its officials and employees. Accordingly, in July 2024, the state government increased the DA by 3%. But till Monday, 1.4 million Maharashtra government employees, including Class 1 officers, zilla parishad employees, teachers and other semi-government employees, were still awaiting their money.

G D Kulthe, founder and chief consultant of the Maharashtra State Gazetted Officers Federation (MSGOF), said that the government generally paid the increased DA three to four months after it became applicable. “But this time, it was delayed for really long,” he said.