8th Pay Commission: Salary plays a very important or perhaps the most important role for any salaried person. Salary decides how that person will spend his future. Ahead of Budget 2025, the Union Cabinet led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 16 approved the formation of the 8th Central Pay Commission. With this, the central government employees are now eying on a salary hike.

Notably, the Government of India set up the Pay Commissions to make recommendations regarding the salary of central government employees. Since India gained independence, the government had set up 8 pay commissions so far to examine the salary structure of all civilian and military employees of the Government of India and suggest changes in it. At present, in India, the government set up the Pay Commission every 10 years.

The government has given relief to more than 1 crore central government employees and pensioners with this news, who will get benefit from the new pay commission. It is worth noting that the then UPA government constituted the 7th Pay Commission in February 2014. The Pay Commission submitted its report to the government in November 2015 and the government then implemented the recommendations of the report from January 1, 2016, which increased the salary and pension of central government employees and pensioners.

The 7th Pay Commission kept the fitment factor at 2.57, thereby increasing the minimum basic salary for central government employees from Rs 7,000 to Rs 18,000. Apart from this, the government also increased the minimum pension to Rs 9,000.

8th Pay Commission: Is 186% Salary Hike On The Cards?

Shiv Gopal Mishra, secretary of the National Council of Joint Consultative Machinery (NC-JCM), recently said that the new pay commission will recommend a fitment factor of “at least 2.86”. This could lead to a significant increase of 186% in the salaries of central government employees.

If the central government approves this fitment factor, the minimum basic pay of central government employees could increase from Rs 18,000 to Rs 51,480. Additionally, the pension of pensioners on this fitment factor will potentially increase from Rs 9,000 to Rs 25,740.

Furthermore, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav has indicated that the government will implement the new pay commission from 2026. Vaishnav said, “the government has approved the constitution of the 8th Pay Commission so that recommendations are made in a timely manner and can be implemented from 2026 onwards.”

Salary Of Govt Employees In Earlier Pay Commissions?

Under the 1st Pay Commission, the government increased the minimum basic monthly salary for central government employees from Rs 10 to Rs 30 while under the 2nd Pay Commission, the government raised the minimum basic monthly salary of employees to Rs 80. The minimum basic monthly salary of government employees was increased to Rs 185 under the 3rd Pay Commission, Rs 750 under the 4th Pay Commission, Rs 2,550 under the 5th Pay Commission, Rs 7,000 under the 6th Pay Commission and Rs 18,000 under the 7th Pay Commission.

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