Chandigarh, Sept. 19 -- Ahead of the festive season, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab on Friday announced an 8% dearness allowance (DA) increase for government employees and pensioners, taking it to 50%, and bringing an end to a three-week agitation by government staffers. The DA will be released in two instalments of 4% each. The combined 8% DA, which has been backdated to July 2023, will be disbursed on October 1 along with the September salary. The decision was announced after an hour-long meeting between chief minister Bhagwant Mann and union representatives. P2...