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CUSTOMS, EXCISE AND GOLD (CONTROL) APPELLATE TRIBUNAL, MADRAS
V.P. Gulati, T.P. Nambiar, JJ.
Commissioner of Customs, Madras -Appellant
Versus
E.I.D. Parry (I) Ltd. -Respondent
Order No. 3344/97 Appeal No. C/349/97, 3344 of 1997, C/349 of 1997
Decided On : 23-12-1997
Rama Rao,Sundaram, S. Raghunathan
Per Shri V.P. Gulati:
The issue in the appeal relates to grant of benefit of assessment of the pipelines and pipeline manifolds under Project Import Regulations, under T.H. 98.01.
2. The Ld. Lower appellate authority has allowed this benefit to the respondents.
3. The Ld. JDR for the department has pleaded that the pipeline is used for the transmission of Ammonia from the Offshore to the tanks in the respondents factory. He has pleaded that the laying of the pipeline to the appellants' factory from the shortline cannot be considered as substantial expansion of the appellants' plant. He has pleaded that the pipelines were outside the factory. He has pleaded that the issue has to be decided in the context of the definition "Industrial Plant" as set out in the Project Import Regulations. He has pleaded that the goods which are covered under T.H. 98.01 have to conform to the description as set out under 98.01 read with note 2 of chapter 98. According to this the heading 98.01 is to be taken cover the goods which are imported in accordance with the Regulations made under section 157 of the Customs Act, 1962 and the expressions used in this heading shall have the meaning assigned to them in the said regulations. He pointed out that the goods as covered have to answer to the use in the Industrial Plant or for expansion thereof. He, in this connection, referred us to the definition of the Industrial Plant as set out in the Project Import Regulations, 1986 and also to the terms of substantial expansion as set out in the definition and the same are reproduced for convenience of reference as under :-
3.Definitions.- For the purposes of these regulations,-
(a) "industrial plants" means an industrial system designed to be employed directly in the performance of any process or series of processes necessary for manufacture, production or extraction of a commodity, but does not include -
(i) establishments designed to offer services of any description such as hotels, hospitals, photographic studios, photographic film processing laboratories, photocopying studios, laundries, garages and workshops; or
(ii) a single machine or a composite machine, within the meaning assigned to it, in Notes 3 and 4 to Section XVI of the said First Schedule;
(b) "substantial expansion" means an expansion which will increase the existing installed capacity by not less than 25 per cent;
(c) "unit" means any self-contained portion of an industrial plant or any self-contained portion of a project specified under the said heading No. 98.01 and having an independent function in the execution of the said project.
4. He has pleaded as could be seen from the definition the Industrial System has to be such which is directly employed in the performance of any process or series of processes necessary for manufacture, production or extraction and the term 'substantial expansion' means expansion of which will increase the existing installed capacity by not less than 25 percent.
5. He has pleaded the pipeline is used only for the transmission of the Ammonia and has nothing to do with the processing of the materials or in the series of processes necessary for manufacture or production of the goods in the respondents' unit. He, in this connection, referred us to the decision in the case of National Aluminium Co. Ltd. Vs. CC, Madras reported in 1997 (21) RLT 397 =1997 (94) ELT 409 (T) (Larger Bench) and stated that in that case the post facility Alumina Conveying system intended for unloading of the raw materials and loading of finished products are not taken to be covered by the Project Import Regulations under the then T.H. 84.66 and he referred us to para-12 of the said judgement which is produced below for convenience of reference :-
12. In Project Imports Regulations, 1986, the expression "industrial plants" has been defined as an industrial system designed to be employed directly in the performance of any process or series of processes necessary for manufacture, production or extra
