No hiked DA for Haryana staff, pensioners

Pradeep Sharma

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 25

In a setback to over 5 lakh Haryana Government employees and pensioners, their increased dearness allowance (DA), which has been put on hold since January 1, 2020, in view of the economic crisis triggered off by the Covid pandemic, will not be restored with effect from July 1, 2021.

Sources said the Khattar government would not restore the increased DA as the after-effects of the pandemic on the state’s economy were still visible and it would not possible to restore the hiked DA.

The suspension of the payment of the DA installments, moratorium on new government jobs and putting leave travel concession (LTC) on hold were some of the austerity measures announced by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar last year.

“In view of the crisis arising out of Covid, it has been decided that the additional installment of the DA payable to the Haryana Government employees and dearness relief (DR) to the Haryana Government pensioners, due from January 1, 2020, shall not be paid. However, the DA and DR at the current rate of 17% will continued to be paid,” the letter from the Finance Department had said.

Meanwhile, Subhash Lamba, president, Sarv Karamchari Sangh, alleged that the denial of the DA instalments to the employees and the pensioners was violation of their fundamental rights. “While the prices have increased substantially since last year, there has been no increase in the DA since one and a half years, putting employees to financial loss during the pandemic,” he said, adding that the sangh would soon launch an agitation on the issue.