8th Pay Commission: Old Allowances Can Be Removed, New Perks Can Be Added – Trak.in
The Centre is moving forward with the formation of the much-anticipated new pay commission, aiming to revise the salaries, pensions, and allowances of central government employees and pensioners. After the official announcement in January regarding the formation of the new pay panel, the next big step is the appointment of a chairman and two members, expected to be finalised next month.
This development has sparked growing curiosity among nearly 1 crore central government employees and pensioners, as discussions around salary hikes and allowance revisions intensify. However, it’s important to note that the role of the pay commission extends beyond salary revisions. The commission also reviews existing allowances, recommends new ones, and suggests removing outdated or irrelevant benefits.
What Can Change This Time?
Reports suggest that the new pay commission may eliminate obsolete allowances and propose fresh ones based on current needs. This was the case with the previous pay panel, which reviewed 196 allowances, scrapped 101 of them, merged several others, and retained only 95.
Salary revision is another major focus. Under the previous panel, a fitment factor of 2.57 was applied, which raised the minimum basic salary to Rs 18,000 and the maximum to Rs 2,25,000. While there is speculation about the new fitment factor, official confirmation will only arrive once the commission presents its recommendations.
Timeline and Process
The terms of reference—essentially the framework for how the new pay panel will function—are expected to be decided before April 2025. After appointing members, the panel may take about a year to study various aspects, consult with employee representatives, and present its final report to the government.
Once the report is submitted, the government will review the recommendations and announce the final decisions, which could result in salary hikes, new allowances, and better benefits for central government staff and pensioners.
As employees eagerly await the updates, the upcoming months will be crucial in determining how substantial the benefits will be under the new structure.
