Dearness Allowance hike: Central Government says 24 per cent DA raise claim is not true!

Dearness Allowance Latest News: The Central Government has denied any hike in Dearness Allowance (DA) recently. The government’s official fact-checker, PIB Fact Check, said on Tuesday (December 1, 2020) that a morphed image being circulated on social media claimed that the Union Ministry of Finance has allowed 24 per cent DA hike. However, the Central government has taken no such decision and the claim made in the morphed image is fake, the fact-checker said.

The morphed image being circulated on the social media makes the fake claim that the Central government has not just approved 24 per cent DA hike but also it has decided to provide the arrears. The morphed image wrongly claims that such a decision has been announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Additional DA on hold

In view of COVID-19 pandemic, the Central Government has held DA hike for around 50 lakh Central Government Employees. A decision in this regard was announced in April this year. While announcing the hold on DA hike, the Central Government had made it clear that the dearness allowance at the current rate would continue to be paid to Central Government Employees.

“In view of the crisis arising out of COVID-19, it has been decided that the additional instalment of Dearness Allowance payable to Central Government Employees, Dearness Relief to Central Government pensioners, due from 1st January 2020 shall not be paid,” an Office Memorandum of Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance said in April 2020.

Following the decision of the Central Government, several state government had also held DA hike for their employees.

In November, additional instalments of DA payable to employees of Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) was stopped. It had said that the additional instalments of Dearness Allowances due from 01.01.2021 and 01.04.2021, will not be paid. However, Dearness Allowance at current rates (effective 01.07.2020) would continue to be paid.