Marketability of intermediate goods upheld for PVC cure rods, supporting excisability and Chapter 39 classification.

PVC cure rods were treated as excisable and classifiable under Chapter 39 because the assessee did not prove that they lacked marketability. The Tribunal noted that the chemical technology report only described changes in density and size on exposure to boiling water, without establishing that the product was unsaleable or unusable, and the chartered engineer's declaration did not support non-marketable character. In the absence of evidence ruling out marketability, and because the product was known in the plastic industry and used in manufacture of PVC floats, the finding of excisability was upheld and the challenge to the order-in-appeal failed.

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Issues: Whether PVC cure rods were excisable and classifiable under Chapter 39 on the basis that they were marketable intermediate goods.

Analysis: The Tribunal found that the material produced by the assessee did not establish short shelf life or absence of marketability. The chemical technology report only showed change in density and size on boiling water and did not address saleability or use, while the chartered engineer's declaration also did not support the plea of non-marketable character. In the absence of evidence to rule out marketability, and since the product was known in the plastic industry and used in the manufacture of PVC floats, the finding of excisability was upheld.

Conclusion: PVC cure rods were held to be excisable and classifiable under Chapter 39, and the challenge to the order-in-appeal failed.

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