Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has announced a 5 per cent increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) for state government employees receiving salaries under the pre-revised pay scales of the Odisha Revised Scales of Pay (ORSP) Rules, 2008.
With this revision, the Dearness Allowance for eligible employees rises from 257 per cent to 262 per cent.
According to an official notification issued by the Finance Department, the enhanced allowance takes retroactive effect from January 1, 2026. The state’s decision follows a corresponding revision by the Ministry of Finance, which increased DA for central staff under the 6th Central Pay Commission framework.
This was approved following a review of the state’s financial capacity and adherence to fiscal targets mandated by the Odisha Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2005. This latest sanction succeeds a previous revision made on December 30, 2025, which had raised the DA for the same employee category from 252 per cent to 257 per cent with effect from July 1, 2025.
Under the current directives, the revised allowance will be calculated against the combined total of an employee’s Basic Pay and Grade Pay.
The expanded benefits apply to a wide section of state personnel, including staff at aided educational institutions, as well as teaching and non-teaching university employees whose full salary expenditures are funded by the state. The order also encompasses university teachers governed by AICTE and UGC pay scales, medical college faculty, subordinate judicial officers, work-charged employees, and job contract workers in the Consolidation and Settlement Organisation receiving fixed pay on regular scales. Additionally, contractual employees appointed on regular scales and employees who were active in service as of July 1, 2025, but retired before the formal release of this notification, are covered under the scope of the sanction.
Treasuries, special treasuries, and sub-treasuries across the state have been directed to process claims for the enhanced DA alongside the regular salary bills for July 2026 onwards. Employees will also receive accumulated arrears for the five-month period spanning February 2026 to June 2026, which are scheduled for disbursement immediately following the rollout of July salaries.