New Delhi: The Union government on 28 October announced the formation of the 8th Central Pay Commission (CPC) to review and recommend revisions in the pay structure and benefits of Central government employees.
The decision is understood to be a major step toward revising salaries ahead of the next implementation cycle beginning 1 January 2026.
The decision was approved by the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which also cleared the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the new Commission. Officials said the ToR was finalised following detailed consultations with various ministries, state governments, and the staff side of the Joint Consultative Machinery.
The 8th Pay Commission, chaired by Justice Ranjan Prakash Desai, former judge of the Supreme Court, has been tasked with submitting its recommendations within 18 months. The Commission will cover around 50 lakh Central government employees, including personnel from the defence services, and approximately 69 lakh pensioners.
Apart from Justice Desai, the Commission includes Professor Pulak Ghosh, a faculty member at IIM Bangalore, as a part-time member and Pankaj Jain, currently Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, as Member-Secretary.
The last such panel, the 7th Central Pay Commission, was constituted in February 2014, and its recommendations were implemented from 1 January 2016.
Meanwhile, to mitigate the impact of inflation on real income, the government continues to disburse Dearness Allowance (DA) to its employees and pensioners. The DA rate is revised every six months, based on the prevailing inflation rate, ensuring compensation for the erosion in purchasing power until the new pay structure comes into force.
