India

Punjab Employees Reject 3% DA Increase, Plan Month-Long Protest

By Kanishka Singharia

Government employees in Punjab have declined to accept the 3 per cent hike in dearness allowance (DA) announced by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann as a ‘Diwali gift’ and have announced a month‑long protest. The sit‑in will begin on November 13 in Sangrur and run until November 19, after which the protest site will move from Chandigarh. From December 1 to 5, unions will protest outside the homes of all 91 AAP MLAs in their constituencies, burning effigies of the ruling party. On December 6, the ashes of the burnt effigies will be immersed in the Budha Nullah, according to Joint Coordination Committee leaders Sukhchain Khaira and Gurnam Singh Virk. A further protest on December 13 will involve a human chain from Shambhu to Amritsar.

The announcement follows Mann’s declaration of a 3 per cent DA increase for about 8 lakh state government employees, effective from November 1, 2026, raising the DA rate from 50 per cent to 53 per cent. Mann described the hike as a “Diwali gift” for employees and pensioners.

Employee unions disagreed, arguing that the increase is insufficient because a significant amount of DA remains unpaid. They said they would continue demonstrations until their demands are met. Sukhchain Singh Khaira, coordinator of the Joint Action Committee of government employees and pensioners, said the 3 per cent release is “not a Diwali gift” and is only a portion of what is already due.

The unions’ demands include implementation of the Old Pension Scheme, release of the remaining 10 per cent DA, payment of pending DA arrears, implementation of Sixth Pay Commission recommendations, restoration of old pay scales and allowances, and withdrawal of policies affecting employees’ service conditions.

During a media presentation, Joint Coordination Committee leaders countered what they called misleading claims by the state government. They played video clips of AAP leaders from before the party came to power and from its time in government. The leaders questioned the government’s claim that Punjab employees receive the highest salaries in the country and disputed the claim that pending DA instalments were left by previous governments. They stated that only seven per cent DA was pending when the Congress lost the election and that the Akali‑BJP government had not left any pending DA. The leaders also alleged that the government was presenting the payment of Sixth Pay Commission arrears as clearance of pending DA dues, while 10 per cent DA was still outstanding and demanded its immediate release. They further accused the government of going back on its promise to implement the Old Pension Scheme.