The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the constitution of the 8th Pay Commission to revise salaries of Central government employees, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Thursday. The announcement comes days ahead of Budget 2025.
The 8th Pay Commission will revise the pensions, allowances, and salaries of central government retirees and employees. In addition to salary hikes, the revisions under the 8th Pay Commission will also adjust the Dearness Allowance (DA) to align with inflation.
The government has not given any details on the percentage of salary hikes under the 8th Pay Commission. However, it is estimated that according to the fitment factor, the salary of employees could be hiked, as per various reports. The minimum basic salary could be hiked to ₹51,480 from ₹18,000, according to Business Today.
The salaries, pensions and allowances are revised under pay commissions through the fitment factor. It is a key multiplier used to calculate salaries and pensions for government employees. The multiplier is decided by taking into account various factors such as inflation in the country, requirement of employees, affordability of government etc.
Nearly 50 lakh central government employees, including defence personnel, are expected to benefit from the 8th Pay Commission.
Almost 65 lakh Central government pensioners, including defence retirees, are expected to benefit after the revision.
The commission will likely be formed by 2026, according to Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. The 8th Pay Commission could be expected to take effect by January 1, 2026, according to reports.
A pay commission is constituted by the central government once every decade to review and recommend changes to the salary structure of government employees. The commission considers factors such as inflation, the state of the economy, income disparities, and related factors. Additionally, it reviews bonuses, perks, allowances, and other benefits provided to government employees.
The pay commission is typically constituted once every ten years. The government has established seven pay commissions since 1946.
The recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission, formed in 2014 by the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government, are currently being followed. The recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission were implemented on January 1, 2016.
Catch all the Instant Personal Loan, Business Loan, Business News, Money news, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.