The Tripura government is taking steps to gradually reduce the gap in Dearness Allowance (DA) for state employees, Finance Minister Pranajit Singha Roy informed the Legislative Assembly today.

Responding to a notice raised by MLA Gopal Roy during the mention session, the minister said that efforts are being made in line with the state’s financial capacity. He also assured that a permanent mechanism for timely promotions is in the pipeline, ensuring employees are promoted after due legal procedures.

Highlighting key measures already undertaken, Singha Roy said the fitment factor had been revised from 2.25 to 2.57 in accordance with the 7th Central Pay Commission, resulting in a 14.22% hike in basic pay. This, he noted, provides additional benefits with each DA increase.

He reminded the House that even during the COVID-19 crisis, the government had announced Dearness Relief (DR) for employees and pensioners, besides introducing cash in lieu of LTC. “Earlier, there was no policy to regularize fixed-pay employees, even after 8–10 years of service. Our government revised the policy, making them eligible for regularization after five years of continuous service, even if served in different posts,” he said.

On promotions, the minister acknowledged delays caused by legal hurdles but added that ad-hoc promotions had been introduced to extend benefits. A policy is also being drafted to include all government employees under the Chief Minister’s Jan Arogya Yojana health scheme.

The minister further listed welfare initiatives for security personnel and employees. The retirement age of Tripura State Rifles (TSR) jawans has been raised from 58 to 60 years, while their ration money and dress allowance have also been increased. The monthly pension of Home Guards has been tripled, he said.

Additionally, the festival advance for employees has been raised from ₹5,000 to ₹20,000, and the festival grant has been tripled compared to 2018.