WB DA Arrears: State Employees Allege Massive Discrepancies in Dearness Allowance Payouts

WB DA Arrears: The long-standing battle for rightful Dearness Allowance (DA) for West Bengal state government employees has taken a fresh and contentious turn. Following the historic Supreme Court judgment pronounced by a division bench on February 5, 2026, which clearly established that DA is a legally enforceable right for all government employees, the state administration was given a strict deadline of March 31, 2026, to clear the pending arrears. However, as the deadline approaches, serious allegations of discrepancies and underpayment have surfaced against the State Finance Department, sparking massive outrage among employees who have been eagerly tracking their updates on the WBIFMS portal.

Supreme Court Verdict and The Ensuing Confusion

For years, wbpay.in has been closely monitoring the DA movement and providing crucial updates to state employees. Following the landmark February 5 ruling, it was expected that the West Bengal government would seamlessly clear the dues. Unfortunately, recent memos issued by the Finance Department have created severe confusion. According to Debaprasad Haldar, Convener of the Unity Forum, the calculations presented in these recent government orders show alarming inconsistencies. When the organization analyzed the initial arrear calculations for several employees, they discovered significant deviations from the rightful entitlements.

The 164% DA Claim vs. State Government’s Calculation

The core of the dispute lies in the percentage of DA applied for the arrear calculations up to December 2019. Here is a breakdown of the conflict:

• Rightful Entitlement: The Unity Forum claims that based on the All India Consumer Price Index (AICPI) base year 1982=100 (Index 536), the applicable DA rate should be strictly 164%.
• State Government’s Payout: Instead of the full 164%, the government is allegedly capping the payout at 140% to 145%, essentially depriving employees of nearly half their rightful dues.
• Precedent Ignored: Employees of Bangabhavan have already received their DA calculated at the 164% rate, raising questions as to why the rest of the state cadre is being subjected to a different formula.
• Missing Years: Furthermore, the current calculations mysteriously skip the period from April 1, 2008, to 2015, focusing only on the 2016 to 2019 window.

Legal Notice and Contempt of Court Threat

In response to these discrepancies, the Unity Forum has escalated the matter legally. On behalf of the forum, senior advocate Sri P. Chatterjee—who has been representing the employees in the Supreme Court Special Leave Petition (SLP) from the very beginning—served a stern legal notice to the state secretariat, Nabanna. The notice makes it explicitly clear that any payment less than the AICPI-backed 164% will be treated as a direct violation of the Supreme Court’s orders. Additionally, the forum has filed an RTI application seeking transparency on the state’s calculation methodology.

What’s Next for WB State Employees?

The situation remains highly volatile as the state government finds itself under mounting legal pressure. The next crucial date in this saga is April 15, 2026, when the compliance report is scheduled to be submitted to the Supreme Court. The Unity Forum has unequivocally stated that if the full arrears are not disbursed as per the 164% calculation, they will initiate contempt of court proceedings against the state government on that very day. As always, we at wbpay.in advise all employees to keep a close watch on their HRMS profiles and stay tuned to our portal for the latest official orders and DA-related developments.