Diwali gift: Karnataka hikes dearness allowance by 4.7%

Ahead of the Deepavali festival, Karnataka has ordered a 4.75% hike in dearness allowance (DA) for government employees. Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has also announced an additional Rs 1,000 of hardship allowance for police personnel.

The DA enhancement will come into retrospective effect from July 1, 2019, and will apply to full-time government employees, Zilla Panchayat staff, employees of aided educational institutions and universities, according to an order issued by the Finance Department on Saturday.

The hike takes the DA up from the existing 6.50% to 11.25% of the basic pay. For instance, an entry-level government employee with a basic pay of Rs 17,000 per month will now get DA of Rs 1,913, up from Rs 1,105. Similarly, an employee with a basic pay of Rs 67,550 will get DA of Rs 7,599 instead of the earlier Rs 4,391.

The DA hike will also apply to government pensioners, the order states.

For police personnel, Yediyurappa said their salaries had been revised as recommended by the Raghavendra Auradkar committee, ahead of the Deepavali festival and the Police Martyrs’ Day (or Police Commemoration Day). The revised pay scales will come into effect from August 1, 2019.

“The state government has accepted all recommendations made by the Raghavendra Auradkar committee...By upgrading the pay scales, the government has given priority to the welfare of officers and staff of the police department,” Yediyurappa said in a statement.

“Now, the monthly salary of police constables who join newly will go up from Rs 30,427 (including all allowances) to Rs 34,267,” Yediyurappa said. The hike in the hardship allowance for the police will cost the government an additional Rs 10.70 crore every month and Rs 128.38 crore annually.