Diwali Bonanza In Tamil Nadu: CM Vijay Hikes DA To 63% For 16 Lakh Staff

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Saturday announced a hike in Dearness Allowance for government employees, teachers and pensioners. The allowance has been increased from 60% to 63%, bringing cheer ahead of Diwali.

The revision will be effective retrospectively from July 1, 2026, and is expected to benefit around 16 lakh beneficiaries, including employees, teachers, pensioners and family pensioners across the state. According to a government release, the move will place an additional burden of Rs 1858 crore annually on the state exchequer.

The decision was announced at a time when a similar hike was announced for central government employees, whose DA was also raised from 60% to 63% with effect from the same date.

Matching Centre's Hike And Diwali Joy

The government release stated that the timely announcement will enable government employees, teachers and pensioners to celebrate the upcoming Diwali festival with joy. It added that the Chief Minister ordered the matching revision after reviewing the Centre’s decision, taking into account the role of government employees and teachers in implementing welfare schemes.

The matching hike ensures parity between state and central government staff, a demand that employee associations had been raising for several months. Implementing the decision retrospectively from July, the government has ensured that arrears for the intervening months will also be paid to beneficiaries.

The officials stated that the additional financial implication has been factored in as a welfare measure recognising the contribution of the administrative machinery to the delivery of government schemes.

5-Year Age Relaxation For Government Jobs

The DA announcement came just a day after CM Vijay granted a big concession for job aspirants. The government has approved a 5-year relaxation in the upper age limit for candidates applying for government jobs, a decision that will remain in force for 5 years and will apply in addition to existing age concessions.

The government stated that the decision followed representations from aspirants seeking more opportunities to appear for competitive examinations, particularly after disruptions in recruitment cycles.

Now, under the new norms, for Group I services, the upper age limit will increase from 32 to 37 years for general category candidates and from 37 to 42 years for reserved category candidates. The differently abled candidates in the general category will now be eligible up to 47 years, against the existing limit of 42. In the context of those in reserved categories, the limit will rise from 47 to 52 years.

The upper age limit for general category candidates for Group II and Group IIA services will increase from 30 to 35 years. On the other hand, for differently abled candidates in the general category, it will rise from 40 to 45 years. The reserved category candidates currently have no upper age limit for Group II and Group IIA services, and that position continues.