8th Pay Commission: How higher HRA, TPTA, and family units may raise Level 1 employee's salary by 65%

Major employee and pensioner bodies of central government employees have demanded a higher family unit count, higher rates of house rent allowance (HRA) and transport allowance (TPTA) and the merge of dearness allowance (DA) with basic pay from the 8^th Pay Commission. These bodies think that the existing family unit count, DA, HRA and TPTA need revisions by the 8^th Pay Commission as under the existing system, low-level employees posted in Tier I and II cities find it increasingly difficult to sustain.

Manjeet Singh Patel, president, All India NPS Employees’ Federation (AINPSEF), says an entry-level employee gets a basic salary of Rs 18,000, HRA of Rs 5,400 (for X-category cities such as Delhi), and TPTA of Rs 2,800 (including 60% DA hike) at present.

Patel says a Rs 5,400 for HRA and a Rs 2,800 TPTA is not sufficient in a city like Delhi, where expenses can be much more.


“That’s why we want higher HRA and TPTA rates and a family unit count of 4.4 in the 8^th Pay Commission. We have suggested 36% HRA for X cities and a TPTA of minimum Rs 9,000 for Level 1 employees. If that happens, then even at a 2.1 fitment factor, the same employee can get a 65% hike in their salary,” says Patel.

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HRA, TPTA and DA-related recommendations of key central government employee bodies such as National Council – Joint Consultative Machinery (NC-JCM), All India Defence Employees Federation (AIDEF), Federation of National Postal Organisations (FNPO), All India NPS Employees’ Federation (AINPSEF), Indian Railways Technical Supervisors Association (IRTSA), are as follows-

8^th Pay Commission: HRA and TPTA recommendations of leading employee bodies

Organisation	HRA	TPTA
AINPSEF	36% (X cities), 24% (Y cities) and 12% (Z cities)	Equal to or less than 12% of basic pay but not less than Rs 9,000
NC-JCM Staff Side memorandum	HRA should continue in three slabs: 40% (X), 35% (Y) and 30% (Z) and be linked with DA increases. HRA should also be extended to pensioners.	Increase TA by 3 times of current rates and link it with DA rise. City Compensatory Allowance should be restored.
AIDEF	HRA should continue in three slabs: 40% (X), 35% (Y) and 30% (Z) and be linked with DA increases. HRA should also be extended to pensioners.	Increase TA by 3 times of current rates and link it with DA rise. City Compensatory Allowance should be restored.
FNPO	40%, 35%, 30% slabs; should be DA-linked; and should be extended to pensioners	Increase by 3 times; DA linked
IRTSA	40%, 30%, 20% and 10% for different class of cities. Should be linked to DA. HRA rates should be increased by 25% whenever DA reaches 25%	TA should be increased by 3 times of existing rates. 19 specified cities are inadequate, more number of cities should be added.

8^th Pay Commission: DA and family unit recommendations of leading employee bodies

Organisation	DA	Family units
AINPSEF	When DA reaches 25%, it should be merged with basic pay.	Increase family unit to 5 (₹69,000 minimum pay)
NC-JCM Staff Side memorandum	HRA to rise automatically with DA. When DA reaches at 25%, it should be merged with basic pay.	Minimum pay proposed with family of 5 units (₹69,000 minimum pay).
AIDEF	HRA to rise automatically with DA. When DA reaches at 25%, it should be merged with basic pay.	Minimum pay proposed with family of 5 units (₹69,000 minimum pay).
FNPO	6-month average; point to-point calculation; no rounding loss; merge with pay at 25%.	Minimum pay proposed with family of 5 units (₹69,000 minimum pay).
IRTSA	Seeks a new DA calculation formula, arguing CPI-IW 2016 does not represent Central Government employees. Wants a separate consumption basket and city-wise realistic index for DA.	States that 3 consumption units are insufficient. Recommends 4.6–4.8 consumption units (including dependent parents and children). Uses this to arrive at a proposed minimum pay of ₹52,600.

How higher family units can change salary of Level 1 employees

As per the 7th Central Pay Commission (7th CPC)-

• Family units = 3.0 (Employee – 1.0, spouse – 0.8, first child – 0.6, second child – 0.6)
• Recommended family units by AINPSEF= 4.4 (it also includes 0.7 unit each for parents)

Impact of family units on fitment factor

If the family unit norm is increased from 3.0 to 4.4 in the 8^th Pay Commission, it represents an increase of 46.66% over the existing 3.0 family units. How?

On January 1, 2026, the fitment factor was 1.58 (100% for basic pay of an employee+58% DA)

If 46.66%, or .47 is factored into 1.58, the fitment factor can be= 1.58+.47= 2.05

It shows that with no additional growth factor, a 4.4 family unit may increase the basic salary of employees by 2.05 times. If the government takes the nearest round figure, the fitment factor can be 2.10 instead of a 2.05.

How higher, HRA, TPTA can increase the salary of an employee

Current basic salary of Pay Level 1 (as on December 31, 2025 and as per the 7^th CPC, in a X category city)= Rs 18,000

To calculate the gross salary, we will add 58% DA, 30% HRA, Rs 1,800+58% of Rs 1,800 as TPTA. The gross salary will thus be Rs 37,080.

Basic salary= Rs 18,000
DA 58%= Rs 10,800
HRA 30%= Rs 5,400
TPTA Rs 1,800+58% of TPTA= Rs 1,800+Rs 1,080= Rs 2,880
Gross= Rs 37,080

Proposed basic salary by AINPSEF= Rs 18,000X2.1= Rs 37,800
DA 2% (January 1, 2026 hike)= 2% of 37,800= Rs 756
HRA (36% proposed)= Rs 36% of Rs 37,800= Rs 13,608
TPTA (proposed)= Rs 9,000+2% of Rs 9,000= Rs 9,180
Gross salary= Rs 61,344 (over all hike 65%) compared to Rs 37,080.

Here, you can see that at a 2.1 fitment factor and higher HRA and TPTA, the gross salary hike of a Level 1 employee can be 65%.