DA Hike: In what would come as a great news for lakhs of state government employees in Tamil Nadu, its chief minister, MK Stalin, said that the government had given the go-ahead to a 4 per cent hike in dearness allowance (DA) for state government employees and pensioners.

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A press release from the Tamil Nadu government says that the hike comes into effect from the start of the financial year, April 1, 2023. It further said that the DA had been increased from 38 per cent to 42 per cent.

The state government's move to increase DA 4 per cent will cost an additional expenditure of Rs 2,366.82 crore annually to the Tamil Nadu exchequer.

The press statement further read, "Considering the ongoing requests of government employees and teachers, Chief Minister MK Stalin has instructed to impose the rise beginning on April 1. According to a formal statement, it will help 16 lakh state employees, teachers, retirees, and family pensioners. The change will result in an increase in spending of Rs 2,367 crore each year." 
The state government said that the increased DA will be applicable to state government employees, pensioners, teachers, and those receiving family pensions. 

"Whenever the Union government announces a hike in DA, the state will immediately follow and announce the hike for the government staff in the future. This is due to the ongoing demand from teachers and government employees," the release said.

With the increased DA, Tamil Nadu followed in the footsteps of the respective state governments of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Assam, which have also increased DA in the recent past.

On Tuesday, the Uttar Pradesh government hiked DA by 4 per cent. The Yogi Adityanath-led government said that the hike would be applicable from January 1, 2023, onwards. 
In April, the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government also hiked DA by four per cent. While, the Assam government in March also increased DA four per cent.