New Delhi, May 2 -- Dearness Allowance for central government employees and pensioners (including railways and defence personnel) has been hiked from 58% of Basic Pay to 60%, with effect from January, the Finance Ministry announced last week.

DA or dearness relief (DR) is a percentage of an employees' basic salary specifically meant to help households with increased cost-of-living by increasing in-hand salary. It is revised twice a year by the All-India Consumer Price Index (AICPI) to counter inflation fluctuations. New announcements generally occur in early March and October, with rollouts in January and July.

Notably, the highest DA hike for central government employees came in 2021 with an 11% increase from the central pay commission...