8th pay commission: Here's how employees, unions, stakeholders can apply online for appointment in Bengaluru

The 8th Central Pay Commission (8th CPC) is in its consultation stage now, with plans to interact with employee and pensioner associations, federations, unions of central government, UT employees and other stakeholders across the country.

Chaired by former Supreme Court Justice Ranjana Prakash
Desai, the commission includes Pankaj Jain, a former IAS, as Member-Secretary, and Professor Pulak Ghosh, tenured Professor of Finance, Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, as a Member of the Commission. Its official Terms of Reference (ToR) were released late last year.

Notably, the panel closed submission of suggestions on 15 June, for data on 31 July, and for consultant applications on 31 August.

How to apply for Bengaluru meetings

The commission has scheduled meetings in September and October this year, in Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Puducherry (Union Territory), Chandigarh (Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, UT), Bengaluru (Karnataka) and Mumbai (Central Railways).

Notably, link to seek appointment for the Bengaluru meet is active for stakeholders, unions, and associations of central government or UTs, who submitted their memorandum and have not yet interacted with the commission, as follows:

• The 8th CPC will visit Bengaluru from 7-8 October (Wednesday-Thursday).
• Those seeking appointments have till 18 September to apply via the official portal.
• https://nicforms.nic.in/enRhYmxlNmE4YzM2YTFkNmE3MzIwMjYwODI0MTQy

State visits and meetings in September, October

• Chennai — 7-8 September 2026: The 8th CPC will visit Chennai from 7-8 September (Monday-Tuesday). Stakeholders from Tamil Nadu, who submitted request for appointment on or before 18 August will be given slots.
• Puducherry — 9 September 2026: The 8th CPC will visit Puducherry on 9 September (Wednesday). Only stakeholders from the UT who submitted request for appointment on or before 18 August will be given slots.
• Chandigarh — 16-18 September 2026: The 8th CPC will visit Chandigarh from 16-18 September (Wednesday-Friday). Stakeholders from the UT and states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh who submitted request for appointment on or before 25 August will be given slots.
• Bengaluru — 7-8 October 2026: The 8th CPC will visit Bengaluru from 7-8 October (Wednesday-Thursday). Deadline for appointments is 18 September.
• Mumbai, Maharashtra: Notably, while no date has been announced, the Railway Ministry last month said the commission intends to visit railway departments under the Central Railway (CR) Zone in Mumbai and seeks to gain firsthand experience of the workers and employees' working conditions.

8th CPC: What is on the agenda?

The commission is examining changes that are desirable and feasible in the emoluments, including for pay (usually includes salary structure, pay matrix), allowances (usually include Dearness Allowance, Dearness Relief, HRA), and other facilities/benefits, in cash or kind (includes increment, promotions, etc.), having regard to rationalisation, contemporary functional requirements and specialised needs.

The panel's decisions are expected to benefit more than 1 crore people, including around 50 lakh central government employees and nearly 65 lakh pensioners, including defence and railway personnel and retirees. Notably, central government employees and armed forces personnel account for about 0.7% of India's 60-crore workforce and nearly 9% of the country's formal sector.

As per the timeline, the commission is likely to announce its recommendations within 18 months since constitution (on 3 November 2025). This means February or April 2027 is the earliest we can get any official announcements on its decisions. But its absolute deadline to submit the report is May 2027.

Further, based on past trends, once the pay commission's recommendations are made, the rollout takes another two to three years to complete. This means that hikes announced in 2027 may only be fully implemented by 2029 or 2030.