Agartala, Oct 7 — Ahead of the five-day Durga Puja festival, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha has announced a three per cent hike in Dearness Allowance (DA) for government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) for pensioners and retired employees, taking the total DA/DR to 44 per cent.
The revised DA and DR would be effective from October 1, the Chief Minister told the media on Tuesday.
He said that the decision will entail an additional expenditure of around Rs 300 crore annually, while the state government will spend around Rs 125 crore during the remaining months of the current financial year (2025-26).
The Chief Minister also announced an enhancement of the House Rent Allowance (HRA) for government employees.
"Under the revised provision, government employees will receive 10 per cent HRA of their basic pay, subject to a maximum of Rs 10,000 per month, with effect from October 1," CM Saha said.
He added that the latest decisions were part of the state government's continued efforts to improve the welfare of government employees and pensioners despite Tripura's limited financial resources.
The Chief Minister said the state government recognised the crucial role played by employees in running the administration, implementing government decisions and schemes, and delivering various services to the people.
"When our (BJP) government came to power in 2018, we had promised the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission, and we fulfilled that commitment. The fitment factor was increased, resulting in a 14.22 per cent increase in basic pay," CM Saha said.
He added that the state government had taken several steps since 2018 to enhance DA and DR for employees and pensioners.
"With the latest three per cent increase, the DA/DR would now stand at 44 per cent."
Chief Minister Saha said the state government was also concerned about the gap in DA between state and Central government employees.
While Central government employees are currently receiving around 60 per cent DA, the state government's rate would now be 44 per cent, leaving a gap of around 16 percentage points.
"We are concerned about this gap and are working gradually to reduce it," the Chief Minister said.
Referring to the 8th Pay Commission, CM Saha said the Central government had already initiated the process, while the state government was also examining the matter.
He also highlighted the government's 2018 recruitment policy, under which 33 per cent reservation was provided for women in direct government recruitment.
The Chief Minister said the state government remained committed to the welfare of employees and pensioners and had been taking various measures within the state's financial constraints to improve their benefits.
Tripura Finance Minister Pranajit Singha Roy and senior officials of the Finance Department were also present at the press conference at the Civil Secretariat.