Installed capacity certificate requirement under exemption notification treated as curable defect, with time allowed to obtain prescribed proof.

Notification No. 5/98-C.E. made exemption conditional on production of a certificate from the prescribed authority confirming a cement manufacturer's installed capacity. Where the assessee had applied for the certificate, the authorities had not acted on the request, and a Chartered Engineer's certificate showed that capacity was within the prescribed limit, the non-production defect was treated as rectifiable. Denial of the exemption without allowing reasonable time to obtain the prescribed certificate was considered unjust, and the exemption denial was set aside with remand to permit procurement of the requisite certificate.

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Issues: Whether the benefit of Notification No. 5/98-C.E. could be denied for non-production of the prescribed certificate of installed capacity, and whether the assessee ought to be granted further time to procure the certificate before final denial of the exemption.

Analysis: The exemption was conditional upon production of a certificate from the specified certifying authority regarding the installed capacity of the cement manufacturer. The assessee had applied for the certificate but the authorities had not acted on the request, and had produced a Chartered Engineer's certificate indicating that the installed capacity was within the prescribed limit. In these circumstances, the defect was treated as capable of being rectified, and denial of the benefit without allowing reasonable time to obtain the prescribed certificate was found to be unjust.

Conclusion: The denial of the notification benefit was set aside and the matter was remanded to the Commissioner (Appeals) with time granted to the assessee to procure the requisite certificate.

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