New Delhi: Government employees and pensioners in several states have received financial relief ahead of Diwali, with state governments announcing increases in Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR). Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh and Karnataka have revised their allowance rates, following the Centre’s decision to increase DA and DR for central government employees and pensioners.
Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh have increased DA from 60% to 63% of basic pay. Karnataka, meanwhile, has revised the allowance for employees covered under its 2024 Revised Pay Scales, raising it from 15.75% to 18%.
The revised rates will provide additional monthly financial benefits to eligible employees and pensioners, with some states also announcing arrears from July 2026.
Gujarat and Uttarakhand Increase DA from 60% to 63%
The Gujarat government has approved a 3-percentage-point increase in Dearness Allowance for eligible state government employees. With this revision, the DA rate has moved from 60% to 63% of basic salary. Eligible pensioners and other beneficiaries will also receive the corresponding benefits under applicable state rules.
The increase will make a noticeable difference to monthly earnings. For example, an employee receiving a basic salary of ₹30,000 will now get ₹18,900 as DA at the revised rate of 63%. Earlier, the DA amount at 60% was ₹18,000. This means an additional ₹900 per month, excluding any arrears.
Uttarakhand has also approved a similar increase, taking DA from 60% to 63%. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami approved the revision, which covers eligible state government employees and pensioners.
The revised benefit also extends to employees working in local bodies, aided educational institutions, state universities and technical educational institutions, subject to the applicable conditions.
The new DA rate is effective retrospectively from July 1, 2026. Eligible employees in Uttarakhand will receive arrears covering July, August, September and October in cash.
Arunachal Pradesh Raises DA and DR to 63%
The Arunachal Pradesh government has announced a 3-percentage-point increase in Dearness Allowance for serving employees and Dearness Relief for pensioners and family pensioners.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu announced the decision on November 6, confirming that the revised rate would increase from 60% to 63%. The change will apply retrospectively from July 1, 2026.
The revised benefits will also cover All India Services officers serving under the state government and central government employees posted on deputation to Arunachal Pradesh, according to the announcement.
The government has also made arrangements for payment of pending arrears. Amounts due for July to October will be credited to the salary accounts of serving employees and the pension accounts of eligible pensioners and family pensioners.
The revised DA and DR will be reflected in the November salary and pension payments.
Karnataka Increases Dearness Allowance to 18%
The Karnataka government has also announced an increase in DA for employees covered under the state’s 2024 Revised Pay Scales.
The allowance has been raised from 15.75% to 18%, representing an increase of 2.25 percentage points. The decision was announced on November 5 and will take effect retrospectively from July 1, 2026.
Eligible retired government employees and family pensioners will also receive the revised benefits under the applicable provisions.
It is important to note that Karnataka follows its own revised pay structure. Therefore, its DA rate of 18% should not be directly compared with the 63% rates announced by Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh, as the underlying pay scales are different.
DA Hike 2026: What Government Employees and Pensioners Should Know
The latest announcements from these four states bring additional financial support for government employees and pensioners ahead of Diwali.
While Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh have revised their DA and DR rates to 63%, Karnataka has increased DA to 18% under its 2024 Revised Pay Scales.
The effective date for all four revisions is July 1, 2026. However, the coverage, payment arrangements and applicable pay structures differ between states.
Employees and pensioners should check their respective state government orders for details about revised payments, eligibility and arrears.
Disclaimer: This article is intended for general informational purposes only and is based on the government announcements mentioned above. Actual DA and DR payments, eligibility conditions and arrears may vary according to individual state government orders and applicable service rules. Employees and pensioners should refer to official notifications issued by their respective state governments for confirmation.