NTA calls on government to immediately release CPS DA arrears with interest

The Navya Andhra Teachers Association (NTA) has urged the State government to immediately release pending Dearness Allowance (DA) arrears due to employees covered under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), along with interest to compensate for delays in payment.

NTA State president Karanam Harikrishna and State general secretary Maganti Srinivasa Rao stated in a release that it was unjustifiable that DA arrears remained unpaid in full even after the deadlines set by the government for instalment-based payments had expired.

The association said it had submitted a representation to the principal secretary of the State Finance Department seeking immediate clearance of the outstanding dues and appropriate interest on delayed payments.

The association pointed out that the payment deadlines stipulated under various government orders, including G.O. Ms. Nos. 66, 113, 28 and 30, had already passed, yet some CPS employees had not received their arrears in full. It also called for a review of instalments due in April and August, this year, and urged the government to release the pending amounts without further delay.

Questioning the purpose of deadlines if payments were not made within the stipulated periods, the NTA appealed to the government to consider employees’ financial difficulties and release instalments scheduled for 2027 and 2028 ahead of schedule.

The association said some CPS employees were owed arrears amounting to lakhs of rupees. Had these amounts been paid on time, employees could have used the money for savings or investments and earned interest.

Citing a Supreme Court ruling directing the Andhra Pradesh government to pay simple interest at 6% annually on salaries and pensions deferred in 2021, the association asked the government to examine whether similar interest or appropriate financial compensation could be provided for delayed DA arrears. The NTA also sought employee-wise details of DA arrears due, amounts already paid, pending instalments and credits made to individual Permanent Retirement Account Number (PRAN) accounts.

The association leaders urged the government to prioritise overdue payments, announce a clear schedule for the remaining instalments and take a favourable decision on interest for delayed payments.