New Delhi, Dec 8 : Over 50 lakh Central government employees and nearly 69 lakh pensioners stand to gain from the rollout of the 8th Central Pay Commission (CPC), the Parliament was informed on Monday.

The Centre currently employs 50.14 lakh personnel, while pensioners number around 69 lakh, all of whom fall under the purview of the upcoming pay revision exercise, Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, told the Lok Sabha in a written reply to questions from members over the status of the timing of the implementation of the 8th CPC, the status of its terms of reference (ToR), and on financial allocations for the scheme in the Budget of 2026â??27.

The minister, while allaying these apprehensions, reiterated that the date of implementation of the 8th CPC would be decided by the government, and that the Commission was bound to send its recommendations within 18 months from the date of its constitution.

He further assured that the government would earmark the necessary funds once the recommendations are vetted and approved. "The government will make appropriate provision of funds for implementing the accepted recommendations of the 8th CPC. It will devise methodology and procedure for formulating its recommendations,â?? Chaudhary noted.

The Finance Ministry had already clarified that the 8th CPC will examine and recommend revisions related to pay, allowances, pensions, and other service conditions.

This is in continuation of similar clarifications issued earlier in response to an unstarred question in the Rajya Sabha by members Javed Ali Khan and Ramji Lal Suman, who sought to know whether the Centre planned to revise pensions or merge the existing Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) with basic pay to provide immediate relief to staff and retirees.

Chaudhary had earlier said that all such matters fall within the mandate of the newly constituted 8th CPC, which was formally established through a government resolution on November 3, along with detailed Terms of Reference.

/IANS