By Admin 
DA Hike 2026: Central employees and pensioners wait eagerly for the announcement of increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) during Holi. The central government gives the pleasure of DA increase to its employees twice a year. The government announces changes in DA around Diwali and Holi.
Holi festival is coming on 3rd March, hence the question in the minds of central employees and pensioners is how much DA can be increased this time. Let us know about this…
How much can DA increase?
Central government employees and pensioners are currently getting 58 percent dearness allowance. Which is effective from July 2025 and was decided after 3 percent increase in October 2025. There are expectations regarding the next DA amendment from January 2026.
Meanwhile, the Labor Bureau has released the All India Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers for December 2025 at 148.2. Whereas the average of the last 12 months has been 145.54. On the basis of these data, the possible DA increase of January 2026 is being estimated. According to estimates, the DA of the employees is expected to be 58 to 60 percent.
Announcement expected before Holi, but date not decided
Due to Holi in the beginning of March, discussions regarding the announcement of dearness allowance have intensified. Some leaders of employee unions believe that this time the government can make an announcement before the festival. Some reports have also expressed the possibility of cabinet approval in the first week of March. However, no official date has been revealed yet.
The government has on some occasions in the past also announced DA hike around major festivals. Like the increase in the July-December period during Diwali. But in the case of January-June period, there has been no fixed pattern and many times the decision has come even after Holi. Since AICPI data has been released in January, employees are hopeful that the process will move forward.
How much increase in salary due to DA increase?
The effect of increase in dearness allowance can be directly visible on the pockets of employees. For example, if the basic salary of an employee is Rs 50,000, then at 58 percent DA he gets Rs 29,000.
Which will increase to Rs 30,000 when it is 60 percent. That means that employee will get Rs 1,000 more every month. Similarly, in the case of an employee with a basic salary of Rs 1 lakh, there will be a benefit of Rs 2,000.
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