8th Pay Commission: Process Starts? Centre Shares Key Update On Seeking Inputs In Parliament

Amid concerns over the delay in the process of setting up the 8th Pay Commission, the government on Monday shared a key update with the Parliament.

The Centre informed the Lok Sabha that inputs on 8th Pay Commission have been sought from key stakeholders, including the Department of Personnel and Training, and the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Defence.

In January, the Cabinet approved setting up the 8th Pay Commission to hike the salaries of nearly 50 lakh central government employees and allowances of about 65 lakh pensioners.

To a question on the reasons for not setting up the Commission even after six months, Minister of Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said: "Inputs have been sought from major stakeholders, including Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Home Affairs, Department of Personnel & Training and from States".

The Chairperson and members of the 8th CPC will be appointed once the 8th Central Pay Commission is notified by the government, Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

Asked when the revised pay scales will be implemented for the employees and pensioners, Chaudhary said: 'The implementation would be taken up once the recommendations are made by the 8th CPC and are accepted by the Government'.

Usually, the pay commission is constituted by the central government every 10 years to revise the remuneration of government employees. The 7th Pay Commission was constituted in February 2014. Its recommendations were implemented from January 1, 2016.

The 8th Pay Commission is due for implementation on January 1, 2026.

To compensate central government employees for erosion in the real value of their salaries on account of inflation, dearness allowance (DA) is paid to them, and the rate of DA is revised periodically every six months on the basis of the rate of inflation.