New Delhi, July 16 -- Dearness Allowance (DA) is a percentage of employees' and pensioners' basic salary that aims to manage impact rising cost of living for central government employees and retired pensioners providing a buffer from inflationary pressures. Updated bi-annually, using data from the All-India Consumer Price Index (AICPI) index, new announcements are made in March and October with rollouts in January and July.

The last hike was announced in April, when the Finance Ministry increased DA from 58% to 60% of basic salary, effective from 1 January 2026.

Hikes are calculated based on the AICPI's 12-month average as prescribed under the 7th pay commission. There have since been 10 hikes since 2021 - the highest at 11% in July 202...