{
  "id": 7481445,
  "title": "Punjab has money for DA arrears, employees say. Do the numbers back them up?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/15/punjab-has-money-for-da-arrears-employees-say-do-the-numbers-back",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-15T05:23:50.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Indian Express",
    "slug": "the-indian-express",
    "url": "https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/chandigarh/punjab-tax-revenue-rises-employee-unions-demand-14200-crore-da-arrears-10878435/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "According to employees' unions, the Punjab government has the financial capacity to clear the approximately Rs 14,200 crore in outstanding Dearness Allowance (DA) and related arrears. The unions base this claim on the state's rising tax revenues over the past four years. Tax revenue has grown from about Rs 37,300 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 57,900 crore in 2024-25. Excise collections, which reached Rs 6,158 crore in 2021-22 under the Congress government, are expected to hit Rs 12,800 crore this financial year. GST inflows have nearly doubled, from Rs 15,541 crore in 2021-22 to around Rs 32,000 crore this year. Stamp duty collections have also exceeded those of previous five-year governments, the unions claim. Initial figures from the current fiscal year indicate a similar trend, with revenue receipts reaching 29.08 per cent of the annual target during April-July 2026, up from 27.44 per cent the previous year. Non-tax revenue nearly doubled over the same period, while both revenue and fiscal deficits grew at a slower pace than last year. Employees and some economists argue that these revenue figures suggest the state has greater fiscal flexibility than the government acknowledges. However, employees' leaders argue that the government's calculations for paying staggered DA payments are misleading. Vikram Dev Singh, president of the Democratic Teachers Front, alleges that the state's share of income on salaries has fallen from 104 per cent to 70 per cent in the past five to six years when accounting for central grants, Punjab's share of GST, and loans. He also contends that DA should not be included in the broader salary bill, as it is an inflation-linked allowance determined separately from Pay Commission awards. Germanjeet Singh, state president of the Democratic Employees Federation, disputes the government's estimate of Rs 14,191 crore in DA arrears, stating that the figure is inflated. He claims the actual amount is Rs 12,600 crore, based on Sixth Pay Commission dues from January 2016 to June 2021. The government maintains that it inherited the liability and has already paid over Rs 6,000 crore to employees. However, economists like R S Ghuman, a former member of the Sixth Punjab Finance Commission, argue that the improvement in revenue collections should not be taken as an indication of financial health. Punjab remains deficit-ridden and heavily indebted, and low investment continues to constrain its economy, according to Ghuman.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": "The Punjab government's rising tax revenues suggest it has greater fiscal flexibility to clear outstanding Dearness Allowance arrears, contradicting its claims of financial constraints, according to employees and some economists.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}