M. Santhanam, Member (J)

1. The appeal against the orders of the Collector of Central Excise, Kanpur in his Order-in-Original No. 10/Collr/MP/78 dated 18-2-1978.

2. The appellants are owners of a Cold Storage in Kanpur. In 1975, they found that some of their bunker type cooling coils and their condensers needed to be replaced. These parts were to be made indigenously. The appellants purchased some pipes from the market and improvisedly made this item by arranging the pipes and connected them with U shape bends and fitted them in their cold storage. The appellants urged that such items are not liable to Central Excise duty. In May, 1975 some of the officers of the Central Excise Preventive Branch, Kanpur paid a surprise visit to their cold storage premises and conducted a survey of the plant. The department alleged that the appellants had not taken out a Central Excise licence for the manufacture of these items and these parts have been utilised without filing their classification list. The goods were seized for contraventions of Rules 9(1), 52-A, 52, 173G(4) and 173Q read with Rule 226 of the Central Excise Rules, 1944.

2A. A show cause notice followed. The adjudicating Officer o