Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government is all set to dole out big fat hikes to its employees ahead of assembly elections 2018. At an additional burden of Rs 10,508 crore per year, the Sixth State Pay Commission has recommended a 30 per cent hike to state government employees. The implementation will benefit not just 5.20 lakh state government employees but also 73,000 employees of aided educational institutions, local bodies and non-teaching staff of colleges and universities. The commission's recommendation to increase the pension of retired state government employees by 30 per cent is expected to benefit 5.73 lakh families of pensioners.