Overview
- The state announced an 8 percentage-point dearness allowance rise Friday after a meeting between Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and union representatives, and unions halted a three-week protest.
- The 8% will be paid in two 4% instalments, backdated to July 2023, with the first instalment to be disbursed on October 1 alongside September salaries.
- Employees continue to press for a full 18% DA raise and large arrears estimated at about ₹14,191 crore for the 18% shortfall and roughly ₹20,191 crore in total unpaid dues.
- Legal action has not stopped: a Punjab and Haryana High Court order to clear pending DA prompted the agitation and the state has moved the Supreme Court, so court proceedings and interest exposure remain active.
- Officials gave sharply different cost estimates for the 8% move (about ₹231 crore versus about ₹1,750 crore for the rest of the year), the pact covers roughly four lakh employees and 3.5 lakh pensioners, and a follow-up meeting is scheduled for early October to seek wider settlements.