Rural area classification for SSI exemption failed where statutory urban status prevailed over a local certificate.

SSI exemption for goods bearing another person's brand name was unavailable unless manufacture was carried on in a factory situated in a rural area, and a unit falling within the Jaipur region treated as urban under the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act could not qualify as rural. The Tehsildar's certificate could not displace the statutory classification, so the appellant failed to establish a prima facie case for rural-area treatment. As a result, the stay order was not modified and the pre-deposit requirement was upheld.

---

---

Issues: Whether the appellant established a prima facie case that its factory was situated in a rural area so as to claim the benefit of SSI exemption under the relevant notification notwithstanding use of another person's brand name, and whether the stay order requiring pre-deposit required modification.

Analysis: The notification excluded denial of SSI exemption for goods bearing another person's brand name only where manufacture was in a factory located in a rural area. The statutory definition of rural area excluded areas notified or treated as urban, and the material on record showed that the village where the factory was located fell within the Jaipur region under the Jaipur Development Authority Act, 1982. By virtue of Section 2(b) of the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, 1956, an area falling within that region was to be treated as urban. The Tehsildar's certificate could not override the statutory position, and the appellant had not established a prima facie case for treating the unit as located in a rural area.

Conclusion: The appellant was not entitled to modification of the stay order, and the demand for pre-deposit was upheld.

Ratio Decidendi: A location falling within a statutorily defined urban region cannot be treated as a rural area for SSI exemption merely on the basis of a local administrative certificate.

---