The Kerala government has given a major relief to its employees by approving a 10% increase in Dearness Allowance (DA). With this hike, the DA has gone up from 25% to 35%. This increase will be reflected in employees’ March salary.
This decision will benefit not only state government employees but also:
Employees of local bodies
Teachers and non-teaching staff of aided schools, colleges, and polytechnic institutions
Full-time contingent employees
Extension to Part-Time Employees and Pensioners
The government has also decided to extend this DA increase to:
Part-time teachers
Part-time contingent employees
Re-employed pensioners
For these groups, DA will be paid based on their eligible salary.
In addition, a 10% increase has been announced for:
State service pensioners
Family pensioners
Ex-gratia recipients
The Dearness Relief (DR) for pensioners will also increase by 10%, and the updated amount will be included in the April pension.
The government has mentioned that a separate order will be issued for paying any outstanding amount due to this increase.
Local bodies will need to cover the additional expenses themselves. State PSUs, boards, and autonomous bodies can implement DA and DR based on their financial capacity.
However, this order does not yet apply to the Kerala State Electricity Board and the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation. Separate orders will be issued for these organizations.
