Chandigarh, September 4, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Punjab government has decided to recommend increasing the Dearness Allowance (DA) from 42 per cent to 60 per cent for around 85,000 employees recruited after July 17, 2020, bringing their DA rate in line with that of Central Government employees.
The decision, announced by Industries and Commerce Minister and AAP Punjab President Aman Arora on Friday, is being described by the government as a major Janmashtami benefit for employees. The recommendation will now be placed before Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann for final approval.
The three-member Cabinet Sub-Committee comprising Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, Aman Arora and Social Security Minister Dr Baljit Kaur approved the recommendation.
Arora said the move was aimed at addressing the disparity faced by employees recruited after July 17, 2020, whose entry pay structure was aligned with the Central Government’s 7th Pay Commission pattern but who continued to receive DA at the Punjab rate of 42 per cent.
“Employees are the backbone of good governance. The Bhagwant Mann government has always stood for the rights and dignity of every employee. Today, on the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami, we are fulfilling another promise by ensuring that our post-2020 recruits get the DA they truly deserve,” Arora said.
The minister explained that the Punjab Cabinet had in December 2020 approved Central Government 7th Pay Commission scales/pay matrix for fresh recruitments and appointments made after July 17, 2020.
This resulted in two broad categories of employees: those appointed before the cut-off date who continued under Punjab’s higher State pay structure, and post-July 17, 2020 recruits whose entry-level pay was based on the Central 7th CPC pattern.
“Employees recruited before July 17, 2020 continue to benefit from Punjab’s higher basic pay scale. However, employees recruited after that date were brought under the Central Pay Scale pattern but continued to receive Punjab’s DA at 42%. This distinction could not be ignored,” Arora said.
He maintained that Punjab employees have historically received substantially higher salaries than their Central counterparts in several major cadres, with State-specific pay scales providing 30 to 70 per cent higher pay in some categories.
However, Arora argued that the same rationale could not be applied to post-2020 recruits because they did not receive the historically higher Punjab entry-level pay scales.
“The argument that the lower DA is offset by substantially higher basic pay is far less applicable to this category,” he said.
Arora said the Bhagwant Mann government had consistently maintained that Punjab Government employees should not receive less salary than their counterparts in the Central Government where comparable pay structures apply.
He added that the state had undertaken large-scale recruitment in recent years, providing employment opportunities to thousands of young people.
“Our government has made it clear that employees of Punjab should not be disadvantaged in comparison with their Central Government counterparts. The increase in DA for post-2020 employees is a step towards addressing that disparity,” Arora said.
The AAP Punjab president also said the State Government had placed its position on the DA issue before the Punjab and Haryana High Court and subsequently before the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition filed by the State. He said Cabinet ministers had reiterated the government’s position at a press conference on September 3.
Taking aim at the Opposition, Arora criticised Congress and BJP leaders for invoking Article 14 of the Constitution while demanding pay parity for Punjab employees.
“If they truly believe in Article 14, let them first ask their own state governments to bring their employees’ pay and allowances at par with the Central Government before preaching to Punjab,” he said.
85,000 Employees to Benefit
According to the government’s fact sheet, around 85,000 employees recruited under the post-2020 regime will benefit from the proposed 60 per cent DA.
The beneficiaries include teachers, police personnel, clerks, nurses, health workers, medical officers, patwaris and junior engineers, among other categories.
The category-wise figures include 11,685 constables, 20,603 teachers, 5,144 clerks, 2,355 nurses, 2,267 peons, 1,467 Multi-Purpose Health Workers, 1,248 Medical Officers (General), 1,214 patwaris and 1,129 Junior Engineers.
The proposed increase applies to employees recruited after July 17, 2020 whose pay is based on the Central Government’s 7th CPC pattern and whose pay has not been revised through court orders.
The government said the move is intended to ensure greater parity in allowances for this category while addressing a long-standing disparity arising from the post-2020 pay structure.
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