Chandigarh: Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday announced a 3% increase in dearness allowance (DA) for state government employees and pensioners, saying the revised allowance would be paid with their December salary and pension.
The decision, which benefits around eight lakh employees and pensioners, takes the state’s DA increase over the past two months to 11%.
Mann said the DA rate, which stood at 28% in 2022, had increased to 53% in 2026. The latest increase would provide employees with a monthly benefit of ₹363 crore, while the cumulative 11% hike would translate into an annual benefit of ₹3,988 crore, he said.
The chief minister claimed that people in Punjab were increasingly satisfied with the state government’s schemes. He said the Aam Aadmi Party government had never claimed that the state treasury was empty, unlike previous governments.
Mann also said the government had provided jobs to 71,777 young people in the state so far.
Reacting to three MLAs joining the BJP, Mann said becoming an MLA was not just about politics but also about standing by one’s party.
He said the legislators who had joined the BJP would soon realise how much respect leaders received in the party. Referring to former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, who also joined the BJP, Mann said Singh had complained that the party did not consult him even on matters concerning Patiala.
