JUDGMENT

B. P. JEEVAN REDDY, J.:—Civil Appeal No. 4474 of 1992.

The appellant is engaged in the manufacture and sale of products like cast-iron pipes, man-hole covers, bends etc. For the assessment year 1989-90, the Commercial Tax Officer, Narayanguda Circle, Hyderabad levied sales tax upon the turn-over relating to said products treating them as general goods. He overruled the petitioners contention that the said products are declared goods liable to tax at the rate of 4% only. The assessees appeal preferred before the Appellate Deputy Commissioner is still pending. Evidently because no stay was granted pending the said appeal, a notice was issued to the appellant calling upon him to pay the tax assessed against which notice he preferred a writ petition being W. P. No. 9315 of 1992, in the High Court of Andhra Pradesh. His main contention in the writ petition was that by virtue of G. 0. Ms. No. 383 Revenue(s) Department 17-4-1985, his products are declared goods and are, therefore, liable to tax only @ 4%.

2. The Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the writ petition following its earlier decision in Deccan Engineers v. State of Andhra Pradesh (reported in 1991, Vol. 12 A.P. Sales Tax Generals, 138: 84 STC 92). In Deccan Engineers, it was held by the A. P. High Court that the expression cast iron in item (2)(i) of the Third Schedule to the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act does not include cast-iron pipes, man-hole covers and bends etc. In this appeal, the correctness of the said view is questioned.

3. Third Schedule to the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act pertains to "declared goods in respect of which a single point tax only is leviable under Section 6". Section 6 was enacted by the A. P. Legislature to accord with sections 14 and 15 of the Central Sales Tax Act. Item (2) of the Third Schedule to the A.P. Act reads as follows:

THIRD SCHEDULE

(As amended up to 15th August 1987)

Declared goods in respect of which a single point tax only is leviable under Section 6.

S. No Description of goods Point of levy Rate of tax

(1) (2) (3) (4)

(1) ............................................

(2) Iron and steel, that is to say :- (3002) -do- *4 -do-

(i) Pig iron and cast iron including ingot moulds, bottom plates, iron scrap, cast iron scrap, runner scrap and iron skill scrap;

(ii) steel semis (ingots, slabs, blooms and billets of all qualities, shapes and sizes);

(iii) skelp bars, tin bars, sheet bars, hoe-bars and sleeper bars;

(iv) steel bars (rounds, roads, squares, flats, octagons and hexagons; plain and ribbed or twisted; in coil form as well as straight length);

(v) steel structurals (angles, joints, channels, tees, sheet pilling sections. Z sections or any other rolled sections);

(vi) sheets, hoops, strips and skelp, both black and galvanised, hot and cold rolled, plain and corrugated in all qualities, in straight lengths and in coil form, as rolled and in revitted condition;

(vii) plates both plain and chequered in all qualities;

(viii) discs, rings, forgings and steel castings;

(ix) tool, alloy and special steels of any of the above categories;

(x) steel melting scrap in all forms including steel skull, turnings and borings;

(xi) steel tubes, both welded and seamless of all diameters and lengths including tube fittings;

(xii) tin-plates, both hot dipped and electrolytic and tin free plates;

(xiii) fish plate bars, bearings plate bars, crossing sleeper bars, fish plates, crossing sleepers and pressed steel sleepers, rails - heavy and light crane rails;

(xiv) wheels, tyres, axles and wheel sets;

(xv) wire rods and wires rolled, drawn, galvanised, aluminised, tinned or coated such as by copper ;

(xvi) defectives, rejects, cuttings or end pieces of any of the above categories.

4. Item (2) of the Third Schedule to the A. P. Act is an exact replica of item (iv) of Section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act. According to Section 15 of the Central Act. declared goods cannot be taxed at a rate exceeding 4% or at more than one stage.