Exemption for medicines and pharmaceuticals retained despite deletion of "pharmaceuticals" from the notification entry.

Goods manufactured by the respondent remained covered by the exemption in Entry 21 of Notification No. 104/82 despite the omission of the word "pharmaceuticals" after the 22-6-1982 amendment. The entry exempted drugs, medicines, pharmaceuticals and drug intermediates under Item 68, and the terms "medicine" and "pharmaceutical" were found to overlap substantially. As no material was produced to show a valid distinction between the respondent's products and medicines, and the ordinary meaning of "pharmaceutical" supported a broad medicinal understanding, the exemption continued to apply and the departmental appeal could not succeed.

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Issues: Whether the goods manufactured by the respondent were entitled to exemption under Entry 21 of the Schedule to Notification No. 104/82, notwithstanding the omission of the word "pharmaceuticals" from the entry.

Analysis: Entry 21 exempted drugs, medicines, pharmaceuticals and drug intermediates not elsewhere specified and classifiable under Item 68 of the Tariff. After the amendment of 22-6-1982, the word "pharmaceuticals" was omitted, but the notification did not define the scope of "medicine" or "pharmaceutical". The terms were found to have considerable overlap, and no material was produced to draw a valid distinction showing that the respondent's products were not medicines but only pharmaceutical products. The ordinary meaning of pharmaceutical also supported the broader understanding of medicinal goods.

Conclusion: The respondent's goods continued to fall within the exemption and the departmental appeal was not entitled to succeed.

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