Special Duty Allowance (SDA) is an allowance paid to officers of All India Services (AIS), including police officers, when posted in any of the seven states in Northeast India, and Ladakh, including in state capitals , and cities and towns like Guwahati, Aizawl, Shillong, Kohima, and Leh. The SDA rate is 37.5 percent of basic pay for AIS officers and 12.5 percent of basic pay for other employees. The SDA is one of the highest allowances paid to a government servant, and is higher than the Siachen allowance, a fixed amount paid to armed forces personnel posted in Siachen.