Central govt workforce likely to decline by nearly 50,000 in 2025

The workforce in central government departments, excluding the central public sector enterprises (CPSEs), is estimated to decline by approximately 50,000 employees by March 2025.

The overall expenditure on pay and allowances, however, is expected to increase by 6.9 per cent to Rs 3.2 trillion in the financial year 2024-25, according to the latest Interim Budget documents.  

The Interim Budget documents for FY25 show central government employee strength is estimated to peak in 2024 at 3.51 million, growing 12 per cent over the preceding year.

The 1.4 per cent decline projected for 2025 is driven by a 5.6 per cent (72,000)