The Chhattisgarh government on Thursday hiked dearness allowance (DA) for state government employees by 5 percent, taking it to 38 per cent, the move coming some months ahead of the year-end Assembly polls in the Congress-ruled state.
The decision, which will benefit around 3.80 lakh staffers, was taken during a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel here, a government official here said.
”We have decided in the cabinet meeting to increase the DA by 5 percent for state government employees. The hike will put an additional burden of Rs 1000 crore per annum on the exchequer,” CM Baghel tweeted.
The official said the DA of government employees was increased by 5 per cent in October last year, which had taken the rate to 33 per cent.
”Now, they will get 38 pr cent DA. The state government has also reduced eligibility criteria for full pension from 33 years of service to 30 years of service, while the qualifying service period for voluntary retirement has been reduced from 20 years to 17 years,” the official said.
