The chief minister made the announcement in the state Assembly on Monday, 28 April, even as the state is set to elect its new government in 2026.
Published Apr 28, 2025 | 12:37 PM ⚊ Updated Apr 28, 2025 | 12:37 PM
Chief minister of Tamil Nadu MK Stalin
Synopsis: The welfare schemes included encashment of earned leave, an increase in dearness allowance (DA), enhanced festival advance, advance for higher studies, enhanced advance for marriage, increased Pongal bonus and festival bonus for pensioners, and maternity leave for probationers, in addition to a plan to review pension schemes.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin announced nine measures for the welfare of government employees, teachers, and pensioners.
The chief minister made the announcement in the state Assembly on Monday, 28 April, even as the state is set to elect its new government in 2026.
The announcement included encashment of earned leave, an increase in dearness allowance (DA), enhanced festival advance, advance for higher studies, enhanced advance for marriage, increased Pongal bonus and festival bonus for pensioners, and maternity leave for probationers, in addition to a plan to review pension schemes.
Encashment of earned leave: The encashment of 15 days of earned leave, previously suspended due to financial strain during the Covid-19 pandemic, will be reinstated from 1 October 2025. This will benefit about 8 lakh employees. An additional allocation of ₹3,561 crore will be made annually.
Increase in dearness allowance: A 2% hike in DA will be provided to state government employees, teachers, and pensioners effective from 1 January 2025, aligning with central government practices. Around 16 lakh people will benefit, and the government expects an additional financial impact of ₹1,252 crore per year.
Festival advance enhancement: The festival advance provided to government employees will be doubled from ₹10,000 to ₹20,000, benefiting nearly 8 lakh employees each year.
Educational advance for higher studies: The educational advance will be enhanced to ₹1 lakh for vocational education and ₹50,000 for arts, science, and polytechnic studies, helping employees’ children pursue higher education.
Marriage advance enhancement: Marriage advance for government employees will be increased uniformly to ₹5 lakh for both male and female employees, compared to the earlier ₹10,000 for women and ₹6,000 for men.
Pongal bonus increase for pensioners: The Pongal gift amount for pensioners and family pensioners, including C and D category pensioners, will be doubled from ₹500 to ₹1,000, benefitting around 4.71 lakh pensioners. The state will bear an additional cost of ₹24 crore.
Festival advance for pensioners: The festival advance for pensioners will be enhanced from ₹4,000 to ₹6,000, helping around 52,000 pensioners. This will cost the government an extra ₹10 crore annually.
Review of pension schemes: A committee formed to review the Old Pension Scheme, Contributory Pension Scheme, and Integrated Pension Scheme has been directed to submit its report and recommendations by 30 September 2025.
Probation benefit for maternity leave: The maternity leave period, which was previously not counted toward probation, will now be included in the probation period for women government employees. This move aims to protect the service rights and career advancement of thousands of young women employees.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
