The meet, which adopted several resolutions concerning the working class, said the income tax exemption limit should be raised upto Rs one lakh to provide more purchasing power to the employees.

It urged the government to amend the payment of gratuity act to raise the maximum ceiling upto the level of Rs 3.5 lakh as in the case of central government employees.

It said the central government has implemented the Fifth Pay Commission recommendation raisingthe maximum ceiling of gratuity. ``It is totally unjustified on the part of the government in not enhancing the gratuity maximum ceiling to the public sector and private sector employees,'' it said.Regarding import and excise duty, the panel noted that in the recent past healthy industries like steel, textile, engineering, paper, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automobiles and coal were driven to sickness ``due to the unrealistic taxing policy of the government.''

``On the one side they are cutting down the import duties and on the other increasing excise duties on domestic products,'' the seminar noted, adding ``Russia, China and other countries are dumping steel and other goods in the Indian market at throw away prices.'' The INTUC working committee urged imposition of heavy dumping duties on these goods to protect domestic industry.

On the Fifth Pay Commission recommendations, INTUC welcomed its implementation but said there are a number of anomalies in the pay scales of group `c' and 'd' which requireimmediate attention.

It urged the government to appoint anomaly committees for each relevant ministry to remove the shortcomings which had risen in course of implementation of the pay panel report and to ensure immediate functioning of the national anomaly committee.