Major gift for employees and pensioners: Government approves two DA and DR installments

The Telangana government has approved a hike of 3.64% and 2.73% in the Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) for government employees and pensioners. The increased amount will be disbursed on November 1, 2026, along with the salary for October.

The Telangana government has announced two installments of DA (Dearness Allowance) and DR (Dearness Relief) for state government employees and pensioners. Fulfilling the assurance given to employee unions by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, the government has approved two hikes of 3.64% and 2.73% in DA/DR.

This revised payment will be disbursed on November 1, 2026, along with the salary for the month of October. This decision will place an additional annual burden of approximately ₹3,057 crore on the state exchequer, comprising ₹1,747 crore for the 3.64% installment and ₹1,310 crore for the 2.73% installment.

By how much will DA and DR increase?

The Telangana government has approved two hikes—3.64% and 2.73%—in the Dearness Allowance (DA) for employees and Dearness Relief (DR) for pensioners. The 3.64% installment will entail an expenditure of ₹1,747 crore, while the 2.73% installment will cost ₹1,310 crore. However, these installments are part of a partial payment towards the 15.43% DA arrears that had been pending since the tenure of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government.

How will the DA arrears be paid?

The Telangana government has structured the payment of DA arrears based on different categories. Under this arrangement, employees will receive the funds in accordance with their service tenure and pension scheme. For employees covered under the General Provident Fund (GPF), DA arrears will be credited to their GPF accounts. Employees retiring on or before January 31, 2027, will receive the outstanding amount in 33 equal monthly installments.

For employees under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), 10% of the DA arrears accrued between January 2024 and September 2026 will be deposited into their PRAN accounts, along with the government's contribution. The remaining 90% of the arrears for CPS employees will be paid in 33 equal monthly installments starting from November 1, 2026. Pensioners will also receive arrears for the revised Dearness Relief (DR) in 33 equal monthly installments; however, this process will commence with the pension for October, payable on November 1, 2026.

Sikkim Government Also Hikes DA and DR

Apart from Telangana, the Sikkim government has also announced an increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) for state employees and pensioners. According to reports, this hike applies to employees covered under the 6th and 7th Central Pay Commissions (CPC).

Specifically, the DA and DR for eligible officials under the 6th Pay Commission have been raised from 257% to 262%. Meanwhile, for officials under the 7th Pay Commission, the rate has increased from 58% to 60%. These revised rates are effective from January 1, 2026.