Himachal employees demand release of Rs 5,000 crore Dearness Allowance arrears
Pay and pension revision arrears amounting to approximately Rs 7,000 crore were also pending
Claiming that their Dearness Allowance (DA) arrears had accumulated to around Rs 5,000 crore, the Himachal Pradesh Sayunkt Karamchari Mahasangh has urged the state government to release the pending dues on priority. “Any further delay will only aggravate financial hardship and increase apprehension regarding the security of legitimate financial entitlements of employees and pensioners,” the Mahasangh said.
It further pointed out that pay and pension revision arrears amounting to approximately Rs 7,000 crore were also pending, taking the total dues to around Rs 12,000 crore. “The rising liability pertaining to DA and pay/pension revision arrears has created financial uncertainty among the serving and retired workforce,” the Mahasangh said.
The Mahasangh had hoped that Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu would announce the release of the pending DA arrears on the occasion of Independence Day. However, their hopes were not fulfilled. According to the Mahasangh, the delay in releasing DA has created apprehension among employees and pensioners that the prolonged pendency may eventually lead to the allowance being frozen, further deferred or its payment pattern being altered from that followed by the Central Government.
The Mahasangh emphasised that the DA was an integral component of salary and pension meant to compensate for the erosion in purchasing power caused by inflation. “Its non-release adversely affects the monthly financial position of employees and pensioners, who are already facing rising costs of essential commodities, healthcare and other necessities,” the Mahasangh said.
