Government employees have asked the Centre to consider merging dearness allowance with their pay, arguing that the Sixth Pay Commission -- quite like the Centre -- could not have anticipated the high inflation that has eroded real wages over the last decade.
Since 2006 – when the recommendations of the last pay commission came into force – the dearness allowance has increased to 90%, a reflection of the high inflation environment that employees have to cope up with.
The demand was made at a preliminary meeting held between the department of personnel and the employee representatives to discuss the proposed Seventh Pay Commission announced by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in September.