New Delhi, Sept. 30 -- Adjusted twice a year by the Centre, dearness allowance (DA) is a percentage of employees' basic pay that aims to mitigate the impact of the rising cost of living and inflation. The bi-annual announcements usually come in March and October, with rollouts in January and July, and is calculated based on data from the All India Consumer Price Index (AICPI).

Over 1 crore individuals, comprising some 50 lakh central government employees and nearly 65 lakh pensioners, including defence staff and railway personnel and retirees, will gain from any DA and Dearness Relief (DR) hikes. Notably, the last DA hike was announced in April this year, when the Finance Ministry increased DA from 58% to 60% of basic salary, effective f...