There is good news for bank employees and pensioners.
The Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) has announced revised Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) rates for early 2026.
The new rates will apply to employees for February, March and April 2026, and to pensioners for February to July 2026.
Here’s what it means in simple terms.
Dearness Allowance Increased for Bank Employees
For workmen and officer employees under the XII Bipartite Settlement (9th Joint Note dated March 8, 2024), the DA rate for February, March and April 2026 has been fixed at 25% of pay.
This increase is based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for October, November and December 2025.
According to IBA, the average CPI stood at 148.03.
Since the base index is 123.03, the rise comes to 25 points. Compared to the last quarter, there has been an increase of 1.07 points.
In simple words, employees will see a higher DA component in their salary for these three months.
For employees under the XI Bipartite Settlement (8th Joint Note dated November 11, 2020), the DA for February, March and April 2026 has been fixed at 59.08% of pay.
Decimals beyond two places will be ignored while calculating the allowance.
Dearness Relief Announced for Pensioners
IBA has also revised Dearness Relief (DR) for pensioners.
These rates will apply from February 2026 to July 2026.
The DR rates vary depending on the retirement period:
Retired between January 1, 1986 and before November 1, 1992 / July 1, 1993: 1528.94% of basic pension
Retired on or after November 1, 1992 / July 1, 1993: 750.75%
Retired on or after April 1, 1998: 482%
Retired on or after November 1, 2002: 334.80%
Retired on or after November 1, 2007: 258.45%
Retired on or after November 1, 2012: 132.20%
Retired on or after November 1, 2017: 59.08%
Retired on or after November 1, 2022: 25%
These revisions aim to adjust pensions in line with inflation.
What This Means for Employees and Retirees
Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief are revised periodically to offset the impact of rising prices.
For serving employees, this means a higher salary component in the coming months.
For pensioners, it means improved monthly payouts during the February to July 2026 period.
Overall, the announcement brings financial relief at a time when inflation continues to affect household budgets.
