Depreciation on approach roads, plant treatment for generating stations, and section 80J relief turn on functional use and record support.

For income-tax purposes, approach roads forming part of an industrial setup may be treated as part of the building and qualify for depreciation. A generating station building may be treated as plant for investment allowance where the functional test shows it is an integral tool of the business, and the allowance is available on that basis. Section 80J relief cannot be denied for the 9th and 10th units where the relevant accounts and commissioning record establish unit-wise entitlement. The reference questions were thus answered in favour of the assessee on depreciation, investment allowance, and section 80J deduction.

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Issues: (i) Whether depreciation was allowable on approach roads by treating them as buildings; (ii) whether the generating station building was to be treated as plant for the purpose of investment allowance; and (iii) whether deduction under section 80J was allowable in respect of the 9th and 10th units commissioned by the assessee.

Issue (i): Whether depreciation was allowable on approach roads by treating them as buildings.

Analysis: The approach roads formed part of the assessee's industrial setup and were claimed for depreciation. The question was governed by the earlier decision holding that approach roads could be treated as part of the building for depreciation purposes.

Conclusion: The issue was answered in the affirmative, in favour of the assessee and against the Revenue.

Issue (ii): Whether the generating station building was to be treated as plant for the purpose of investment allowance.

Analysis: The functional test applied to determine whether the structure served as an integral tool of the business supported treating the generating station as plant. The conclusion followed the principle already applied in an earlier decision on what constitutes plant.

Conclusion: The issue was answered in the affirmative, in favour of the assessee and against the Revenue.

Issue (iii): Whether deduction under section 80J was allowable in respect of the 9th and 10th units commissioned by the assessee.

Analysis: The relevant accounts were produced before the Commissioner, and the 10th unit was shown to have been commissioned during the relevant year. Applying the earlier decision on section 80J relief, the deduction could not be denied on the stated ground.

Conclusion: The issue was answered in the affirmative, in favour of the assessee and against the Revenue.

Final Conclusion: All the referred questions were decided in favour of the assessee, resulting in rejection of the Revenue's challenge on depreciation, investment allowance, and section 80J deduction.

Ratio Decidendi: For income-tax purposes, approach roads may qualify for depreciation as part of the building, a functional structure integral to business operations may be treated as plant, and section 80J relief cannot be denied where the relevant unit-wise entitlement is established on the record.

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