Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government on Thursday announced a hike in Dearness Allowance (DA) for government employees from 12 per cent to 15 per cent. The increase applies to teachers, staff of aided schools, private colleges and polytechnics, full-time temporary employees and those employed at the local government institutions. The revised DA will also apply to part-time teachers and contingent employees, and re-employed pensioners based on their pay scale.

The Dearness Relief for state service, family, ex-gratia, and ex-gratia family pensioners was also raised from 12 per cent to 15 per cent, according to an order from the Finance Department.

The enhanced DA and Dearness Relief will be disbursed along with salaries and pensions from April 2025, payable from May 2025 onwards.

However, the hike does not apply to organisations like Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) and Kerala State Road Transport Commission (KSRTC), which must follow their existing procedures and seek prior government approval when issuing DA and Dearness Relief.

Organisations already following the state pattern of DA/DR can implement the revised rates without referring to the government, provided their board of directors, governing body or executive committee approves the decision and the expenses can be met from their own resources. If the organisation cannot bear the cost, prior approval from the government is required.

Organisations where more than 90 per cent of salary or pension expenses are covered by plan/non-plan grants can release the revised DA/DR with internal approval from their governing bodies, without seeking prior government consent.