Small scale industry (SSI) associations today sought an increase in the exemption limit for excise duty to Rs 2 crore as also a hike in the basic exemption limit for income tax to Rs 75,000.
They also suggested a 100 per cent income tax exemption for export earnings of SSI units.
During their pre-Budget meeting with finance minister Yashwant Sinha, most SSI representatives also sought a gradual policy of dereservation in consultation with the industries concerned.
RSS-backed Laghu Ugyog Bharti president SS Aggarwal, however, said that the government should continue with the reservation policy.
The small-scale industries also sought a special dispensation with respect to labour laws, saying the exit policy announced by the finance minister in his Budget speech for 2001-02 should be confined to large industries.
They also said a differential customs duty policy should be implemented with raw materials attracting a different rate of duty as compared to finished products. The small scale industry also sought greater access to capital and said the cost of other inputs like power should be brought down.
Further, a special procurement policy was suggested with the government sourcing a specified minimum part of its procurement from the sector.
Representa-tives from SSIs also suggested the introduction of a single rate of brand rates for duty drawback for the simplification of the tax administration as also the introduction of a Single Business Act based on the draft Small Industries Bill.
They also said that some of the Budget proposals announced by the finance minister have not been implemented so far and the government should ensure that benefits announced in the Budget actually accrue to SSI units.
Special concessions for textiles units were also recommended. The finance minister told the representatives that the sector should prepare itself to face competition from domestic as well as foreign companies through improvements in efficiency and productivity.
