Central government employees and pensioners have been waiting for the dearness allowance (DA) and dearness relief (DR) hike announcement for June 2026. Now the All India Defence Employees’ Association has written a letter to the Cabinet Secretary and other ministries to announce the DA soon.
The AIDFE, which is the key civilian defence employee body in India, has also reiterated its demand to increase the performance-linked bonus wage ceiling from Rs 7,000, to Rs 21,000.
AIDEF requests for DA hike announcement
In a letter dated October 10, 2026, the AIDEF writes that the cost of living is increasing every day due to escalating prices of essential commodities, due to which the employees and pensioners are in a deep financial crisis.
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The AIDEF writes that the delay in the announcement of DA/DR is causing serious concerns to employees and pensioners.
“Therefore, it is requested that without any further delay, the government is requested to announce the DA/DR due from July 1, 2026, at the earliest,” says the AIDEF in its letter also marked to secretaries of the Department of Expenditure, Department of Personnel & Training and the Ministry of Labour & Employment.
The government announces the DA hike twice a year, based on the All India Consumer Price Index (Industrial Workers) readings of June and December. The announcements, however, come during the festive season. Since Dussehra is just around the corner, many employees and pensioners have been waiting for the DA/DR hike announcement for quite some time.
The current DA rate for central government employees and the DR rate for pensioners is 60%. As per the June AICPI-IW data, the DA can jump to approximately 63%. However, it will be known only when the government makes an announcement about the same.
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AIDEF writes to increase bonus wage ceiling
The AIDEF has also requested the government to increase the bonus wage ceiling for central government employees from Rs 7,000 to Rs 21,000.
Non-gazetted central government employees receive a performance-linked bonus every year around Dussehra, which falls on October 20 this year. However, the AIDEF’s concern is that the bonus ceiling for calculations should be increased from Rs 7,000 to Rs 21,000, since the government has increased the minimum wage to around Rs 21,000 per month.
The AIDEF argues that as per the National Council (Staff Side) – Joint Consultative Machinery, the bonus wage ceiling should not be less than the minimum basic salary as per the 7th Pay Commission, i.e., Rs 18,000/- + 58 % DA (Rs.10,440/-), as on November 25, 2025.
The defence civilian employees’ body further says that the government always follows the provisions of the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, now the Code on Wages, 2019, according to which, the bonus wage ceiling is Rs 7,000.
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“It is understood the Finance Ministry has taken up the matter with the Ministry of Labour and Employment, seeking clarification on what should be the minimum wages to be taken into account for determining the bonus payable ceiling from the year 2025- 2026 onwards,” the AIDEF writes in the letter.
The AIDEF has requested the government to increase the wage ceiling to Rs 21,000 from the Financial Year 2025- 2026 onwards, and the bonus payable for the year 2025-26 should be paid as per the revised ceiling limit.
How the bonus ceiling of Rs 21,000 may impact bonus amount for central government employees
The Annual bonus as per the Rs 7,000 bonus ceiling is Rs 6,908. However, it will increase to Rs 20,724 if the bonus ceiling is increased to Rs 21,000.
Payable bonus at Rs 7,000 bonus ceiling= Rs 7,000/30.4X30= Rs 6,908
Payable bonus at Rs 21,000 bonus ceiling= Rs 21,000/30.4X30= Rs 20,724 (estimated)