Gandhinagar: The Gujarat govt on Wednesday announced a 3% hike in dearness allowance (DA) for more than 9.7 lakh serving employees and pensioners, effective July 1, 2026. The govt will pay Rs 523 crore in arrears for four months in a single instalment along with the Nov salary.The decision came as part of a series of announcements at the weekly state cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Bhupendra Patel.The DA hike will benefit around 4.6 lakh serving employees and more than 5 lakh pensioners. The decision brings the state’s DA rate in line with the Centre’s revised rate, state govt spokesperson Jitu Vaghani told reporters.In another relief measure, the cabinet approved a project to provide insurance cover to 1 lakh livestock under National Livestock Mission. Under the scheme, livestock owners will have to pay just Rs 229 to secure insurance cover of up to Rs 40,000 for one year. The state govt will bear 85% of the premium, amounting to Rs 1,300, as a subsidy. The govt has already received 87,147 applications through the i-Khedut portal.Vaghani said the cabinet also granted in-principle approval for developing a fish landing centre at Shiyalbet island in Amreli district, addressing a long-standing demand of the island’s fishing community. More than 1,100 active fishermen living on the island are expected to benefit from the facility. The proposed centre will include a pile jetty, reclamation works, stone bunds and paver blocks to provide a safe, modern landing facility for fishing boats.The state govt will also organise Janjatiya Gaurav Divas and Janjatiya Gaurav Week across Gujarat to mark the 151st birth anniversary of tribal icon Bhagwan Birsa Munda. Celebrations will be held on Nov 15 across all districts and in all assembly constituencies in the 14 tribal districts. The state-level programme will be organised in Chhota Udepur district.
