Home Guard Salary 2026: Salary In Hand Per Month, Basic Pay and Allowances

Home Guard salary in 2026 isn’t a salary in the usual sense. Home Guards have no basic pay, no pay level, and no fixed monthly amount. They are paid a daily duty allowance for each day they are called up. So a Home Guard in Maharashtra earning ₹1,083 a day can make over ₹30,000 in a busy month and much less in a quiet one.

The rate depends on your state, and monthly income depends on how many days of duty you’re given. This guide covers the rates we could verify, where sources conflict, and how to work out realistic monthly earnings.

Why Home Guards Have No Basic Pay

Home Guards are a volunteer force that supports the police, traffic management, disaster response, and elections. The organisation was set up on 6 December 1946 on a simple idea: citizens with their own jobs would serve part-time, on an honorary basis, when needed.

Over time, many people began doing this duty almost full-time. The pay structure never changed to match, though. There is still no salary scale, no annual increment, and no DA. Instead, there’s a daily rate that each state revises by government order.

When a website lists a Home Guard “basic pay,” it’s usually either a daily rate multiplied by 30 or a police pay scale copied in by mistake.

The Supreme Court Rule That Sets the Daily Rate

Two Supreme Court judgments explain why rates jumped sharply in many states over the past decade.

In Grah Rakshak, Home Guards Welfare Association v. State of Himachal Pradesh (2015), the Court ruled that a Home Guard’s duty allowance for 30 days should add up to the minimum pay of a police constable in that state. In 2023, while ruling on an Odisha case, the Court clarified what that minimum pay includes: basic pay, grade pay, dearness allowance, and washing allowance. It also said Home Guards should get periodic increases whenever police pay goes up.

That’s why rates now differ so much from state to state. Each state links the Home Guard rate to what its own constables earn, and some states have implemented the rulings faster than others.

State-Wise Home Guard Daily Allowance

We’ve shown these rates as carefully as the evidence allows. Where sources disagree, both figures are listed, because a single confident number would be misleading. Rates change by government order, so confirm the latest rate with your district Home Guards office.

Maharashtra: The Clearest Example of the Full Package

Maharashtra’s 2024 revision is the best-documented, and it shows that a Home Guard’s pay includes more than the daily rate. From 1 October 2024, the state raised:

• Duty allowance: from ₹570 to ₹1,083 per day
• Food allowance: from ₹100 to ₹250
• Drill allowance: from ₹90 to ₹180
• Pocket allowance: from ₹35 to ₹100
• Gift allowance: from ₹100 to ₹200

The hike covered about 55,000 Home Guards. The state’s Home Minister said the new duty allowance was the highest in the country at the time.

How to Calculate Monthly In-Hand Pay

Use this formula:

Monthly income = daily duty rate × duty days + any daily add-ons

Here’s what that gives at Maharashtra’s ₹1,083 rate, before food and other allowances:

At Odisha’s ₹623 rate, the same 25 days pays about ₹15,575, which is little more than half the Maharashtra figure for identical work.

Deductions are usually minimal, because Home Guards generally aren’t enrolled in PF or a pension scheme. That means almost the whole amount is in-hand, but it also means there are no retirement savings being built up.

The Real Risk: Duty Days Aren’t Guaranteed

A higher daily rate is only half the picture. The other half is how many days you’re actually called up, and states control that.

Uttar Pradesh shows what can happen. In 2019, after the Supreme Court-linked rise took the daily rate towards ₹672, the state said it couldn’t afford the extra cost. It stopped using about 25,000 Home Guards and cut duty from 25 days a month to 15 for many of the rest.

So a raise in the daily rate led directly to lower monthly income for thousands of Home Guards. Before relying on this income, find out how many duty days your district typically gives. That number matters as much as the rate.

About the “UP Home Guard Pay Level 3” Claims

UP’s Police Recruitment and Promotion Board is running a large enrolment of 41,424 Home Guards across 75 districts, with the result released in June 2026. Around this recruitment, many websites claim that UP Home Guards will get “Pay Level 3” with a ₹5,200–20,200 pay band and ₹2,000 grade pay, adding up to roughly ₹27,000 a month in hand.

Treat these claims with caution. ₹5,200–20,200 was a pay band under the old 6th Pay Commission, not a 2026 figure. We found no official order giving Home Guards a regular pay scale. Home Guards in UP are still widely reported to be paid per duty day. Check any figure against the official enrolment notice or your district commandant before relying on it.

FAQs

Q1. What is a Home Guard’s salary per month in 2026?

It depends on the state rate and duty days. At Maharashtra’s ₹1,083 a day, 25 days of duty earns about ₹27,000. Lower-rate states pay roughly ₹15,000–20,000 for the same days.

Q2. Do Home Guards get basic pay or DA?

No. They receive a daily duty allowance instead. Some states add food, drill, or pocket allowances, but there’s no basic pay, DA, or annual increment like regular government staff get.

Q3. Which state pays Home Guards the most?

Maharashtra’s ₹1,083 daily rate is among the highest verified figures. Some sources report higher rates in Bihar, but reports conflict, so confirm locally.

Q4. Is Home Guard a permanent government job?

No. Home Guards are volunteers called up for duty as needed. Courts have ordered fair pay for them but have not ordered their regularisation as permanent employees.

Q5. Do Home Guards get a pension?

Generally, no. Most Home Guards aren’t covered by PF or pension schemes, so it’s worth planning your own retirement savings alongside this income.