The 8 th Pay Commission (8 th CPC) is holding meetings with employee and pension bodies as well as other stakeholders in Lucknow today (June 23, 2026). They have a packed schedule with 30 interactions lined up. A major point of discussion of the 8 th CPC members with different stakeholders is the demand to raise the house rent allowance (HRA) rates, which currently stand at 10%, 20% and 30%. Different employee and pensioner bodies have proposed different HRA rates, but nearly all are pushing for a significant increase, arguing that it would help a large number of employees cope with rising rents.
Manjeet Singh Patel, national President of All India NPS Employees Federation (AINSPEF), told ET Wealth Online that employee bodies are worried because in big cities like Delhi and Mumbai, rents are sky high and it’s tough for lower-level employees to manage these steep costs.
