NOTES 57 agreement on paper, was first rejected within two years of its adoption and finally 'murdered5 by the Congress Government. Yet the utter reformist leadership of the AITUC had no qualms in claiming that "It was only after independence that the whole framework of colonial-cum-feudal wage was first ideologically smashed55.1 It is indeed shameful that even 15 years after the agreement, the Congress Government continues to deny the working class one of its vital demands. The impunity of the Government is all the more glaring against the background of growing inequalities of income and wealth in the country. It seems that the Government is more anxious to freeze the wage rather than ensure a need-based minimum. This warped approach of the ruling Congress Party is further indicated in the dilatoriness of the Third Pay Commission. Composition and Terms of Reference The employees were anxious about the composition of the Commission and its terms of reference. As for composition, there were some members whose anti-working class bias was well known. In a way the inclusion of certain members foreshadowed the outcome of the Commission on such a vital question as the need-based minimum wage. One of the important demands of the employees was that a nominee of their own should be included as a member of the Pay Commission. In answer to the protests against not conceding this demand it was pointed out that Professor V R Pillai, one of the three members of the Commission, (the other being Prof Nihar Ranjan Ray, ProfAKDas Gupta with an ICS Member-Secretary, Sri H N Ray and Sri Raghubar Dayal, Ex-Judge of the Supreme Court as Chairman) was fully conversant with labour laws and labour problems. Pillai's experience and knowledge, indeed, were limited to functioning as Chairman of certain wage committes in Kerala. In fact, when the Commission was constituted, the terms of reference excluded the mention of need-based minimum wage as recommended by the 15th ILC. Only after concerted pressure exerted by the Central Government employees did the Government concede its inclusion in the terms of reference. And it was specifically clarified by a subsequent Resolution that "... while enquiring into the level of minimum remuneration, the Commission may examine the Central Government employees5 demand for a need-based minimum wage based on the recommendations of the 15th Indian Labour Conference55.2 Another question referred to the Commission embraced the principles governing the structure of emoluments, conditions of service (desirable and feasible) and death-cum-retirement benefits of the 4 million Central Government employees including personnel of the All India Services and the Armed Forces. Computation of Minimum Wage Computing the cost of food on the norms recommended by the 15th