Dearness Good news for railroad workers as the board announces a 4% increase in DA. Read more here

 Dearness Good news for railroad workers as the board announces a 4% increase in DA. Read more here

The Railway Board has stated that, beginning of July 1, 2023, the dearness allowance for its workers would increase from 42% to 46% of the base wage.

"The President is pleased to determine that the Dearness Allowance refundable to Railway Employees shall be enhanced compared to the existing rate of 42% to 46% of the Basic Pay alongside effect from 1st July, 2023," the Board stated in an announcement dated October 23, 2023, addressed to General Managers as well as Chief Administrative Officers of All India Railways along with Production Units.

The pay drawn in accordance with the 7th CPC guideline agreed by the government was described as the "Basic Pay," which "does not include any other time of pay like special pay etc."

The workers' subsequent salaries will include the higher DA retroactive to July. Shiva Gopal Mishra, general secretary of the All India Railwaymen's Federation, welcomed the board's decision and said, "The DA was due to the workers from July hence it was the employees' right to obtain it. However, I applaud the choice to make the announcement of its payment prior to Diwali, as reported by PTI.

The National Federation of Indian Railwaymen's General Secretary, M. Raghavaiah, said that DA is given based on the Consumer Price Index and serves to counteract inflation. "It is okay that the Railway Board's has timely announced it, yet, we continue to press our demand for the payment of DA through January 2020 to June 2021 which the federal government froze due to Covid-19," according to the report.

The Railway Board's announcement, meanwhile, came just five days after the Union Cabinet approved a bonus of approximately $15,000 cr. This bonus included a 4% increase in DA for government employees. This increase was in accordance with the accepted formula and was based on the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission.

Earlier, the government had authorized Diwali bonuses for Group C and non-gazetted Group B level personnel, including paramilitary forces. A cap of 7,000 yen has been established by the finance ministry for the computation of non-productivity related incentives (ad hoc bonuses) for central government workers for the fiscal year 2022–2023. According to the memorandum, the Department of Expenditure under the Finance Ministry stated that all non-gazetted employees in Group B along with everything central government employees in Group C who are not covered by any of them productivity-linked bonus scheme have each been given a non-productivity linked bonus (ad-hoc bonus) equivalent to 30 days' worth of pay for the accounting year 2022–2023 so far.