8th Pay Commission Latest Updates: Nearly 10 months after the central government’s announcement, the Eighth Pay Commission has not yet been formed. After a long wait, central employee organizations have demanded that the government issue a notification regarding the commission’s formation soon. Meanwhile, recent indications from the central government indicate that it is working rapidly in this direction. It is expected that the central government may issue the notification next month.
Recently, the Central Secretariat Service Forum raised the issue of the delay in the formation of the Commission. In a letter to the Prime Minister, the Forum stated that the Seventh Pay Commission was formed nearly two years before the date of implementation. This gave the Commission sufficient time to thoroughly study the situation and make its recommendations.
Now, the central government approved the Eighth Pay Commission in January 2025, but it has not yet been formed, while the term of the Seventh Pay Commission is soon to expire (December 2025). In such a situation, central government employees should also receive the benefits of the Eighth Pay Commission on time.
To this end, a notification should be issued soon regarding the formation of the Commission. The Commission’s Chairman and members should be appointed, and a date for commencement should be set, so that the Commission can submit its recommendations on time. The Forum recommended that the Commission’s recommendations be effective from January 1, 2026.
Implementation of the recommendations may take a long time.
Based on past records, the time between the formation of the previous Pay Commission and the implementation of its recommendations has typically been around two years. In such a situation, it is expected that even if the Commission is formed soon, it may still take two years for the recommendations to be implemented.
Accordingly, if the notification for formation is issued in November, it could take until November 2027 for recommendations to be received. After that, implementation could even take until January 2028. However, sources indicate that the government may introduce a formula that could take less than a year for recommendations to be received. In such a situation, the Pay Commission’s recommendations could be implemented beginning in 2027.
Benefits can be given in arrears
While the Eighth Pay Commission’s recommendations may take time to be finalized and implemented, the central government can implement them by the deadline (2026) and provide benefits in arrears. This has been done in the case of previous pay commissions.
The Central Government approved the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission in June 2016, but implemented them from January 1, 2016. Consequently, the benefits of the Eighth Pay Commission can also be implemented from January 1, 2026, which will benefit over 5 million employees and 6.5 million pensioners.
