Chandigarh: For Punjab's 6,507 computer teachers, this Diwali comes with something they have been campaigning for over the past two years: a much bigger pay packet. On Saturday the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government approved a 40 per cent increase in dearness allowance (DA) for teachers under the Punjab ICT Education Society (PICTES), raising their DA from 181 to 221 per cent. Alongside the hike, the government regularised the services of 1,007 non-teaching employees working under Samagra Shiksha.

In an official statement, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, "On the auspicious occasion of Diwali, the Punjab government has announced a major benefit for its employees." He added, "This decision will provide greater stability and security to these employees." Mann said salary-related benefits would also be extended to these employees, and that "the (Punjab) government is committed to the welfare of its employees and ensuring their secure future."

Why the number matters

A "40 per cent hike" here means 40 percentage points added to the DA rate, not a 40 per cent rise in total salary. Even so, a 40-point jump in one go is unusually large for a single cadre.

It also has a history. The previous revision took DA for PICTES computer teachers from 148 per cent to 181 per cent with effect from January 1, 2025. That increase was announced just ahead of a planned protest, and teachers under the banner of the Computer Adhyapak Union argued they were entitled to a 92 per cent hike against the 33 per cent announced at the time. Saturday's decision closes a large part of that gap, though it remains to be seen whether the union treats it as a full settlement.

Part of a wider pattern

The announcement is the latest in a string of employee-focused decisions. Earlier this week Mann announced the release of a three per cent DA instalment for state government employees and pensioners, covering nearly eight lakh beneficiaries. He called it a Diwali gift and said the instalment would be added to the December payout. In September, the government increased DA by eight per cent for employees and pensioners.

These decisions come after a tense year in Punjab's employee relations. More than three lakh government employees went on a statewide strike on August 27, pressing the government to accept demands that included the release of their pending 18 per cent DA. Seen against that backdrop, the recent run of announcements looks like a steady effort to win back a large and vocal section of the state's workforce, with Punjab's next assembly elections due in early 2027.

Mann has repeatedly described government staff as the backbone of the administrative machinery, saying the state "values the hard work and dedication of its employees" and that "employee satisfaction is very important for providing better services to the people."

What comes next

For the 1,007 regularised Samagra Shiksha staff, the change means job security that contractual and society-based employees often lack. For the computer teachers, the next question is implementation: when the revised DA shows up in their pay slips, and whether the long-promised parity with regular teachers follows. The government has not yet given a timeline, and employee unions are likely to watch the notification closely.

With inputs from IANS