New Delhi. The curiosity about the 8th Pay Commission is continuously increasing among crores of central employees and pensioners of the country. There was discussion going on about its possible implementation dates for a long time, but now an important clarification has been issued by the Finance Ministry on this subject, which has calmed many speculations.
Government clarified
In response to a question asked in the Lok Sabha, the Finance Ministry has said that the decision on when the 8th Pay Commission will be implemented will be taken at the appropriate time. That is, the government has not officially confirmed any specific date at present. The ministry also said that when the recommendations of the commission are approved by the government, necessary resources will be ensured in the budget to implement them.
Break on date of 2026
In the past several months, it was being speculated that the new pay commission could come into effect from January 1, 2026. There were also reports that other possible timelines for its implementation have also been considered such as: implementation from FY 2028, option to pay arrears of five quarters starting from January 1, 2026, but none of these dates have been supported in the ministry’s latest statement.
The commission will take 18 months to submit its report.
The government has already clarified that the 8th Pay Commission has been formally notified, and its constitution date has been fixed as November 3, 2025. According to the Finance Ministry, the commission will submit its report within 18 months from the date of constitution. Along with this, it has also been made clear that at present no proposal is under consideration to merge the Dearness Allowance (DA) of employees and Dearness Relief (DR) of pensioners in the basic pay.
Growing concerns about financial burden
Economic experts are increasingly concerned about the huge impact the 8th Pay Commission will have on the government budget. Neelkanth Mishra, member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM), estimates that if the commission is implemented in FY 2028, the total financial burden on the central and state governments could exceed Rs 4 lakh crore. If a potential five quarters of arrears are also included, the burden could rise to around Rs 9 lakh crore.
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