Trade description prevails in tariff classification: paper suitable for offset printing was treated as cartridge paper, not general printing paper.

Offset printing paper of grammage exceeding 85 grams per sq. mt. was treated as cartridge paper under Item 17 of the First Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944, because tariff classification depended on common trade understanding, material composition, and the structure of the tariff entries. The paper was described in trade as hard, strong cartridge paper suitable for offset printing and made from bamboo or grass stock. Its capability for printing did not displace the more specific tariff description, and evidence of actual use for offset printing did not rebut its trade identity. A specific commercial description prevailed over a broader competing entry.

---

---

Issues: Whether offset printing paper of grammage exceeding 85 grams per sq. mt. was classifiable as cartridge paper under Item 17 of the First Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944, rather than as printing and writing paper.

Analysis: Classification under the tariff entry had to be determined by the common trade understanding of the goods, the material from which they were made, and the manner in which the tariff items were structured. The record showed that cartridge paper in the paper trade included hard, strong paper suitable for offset printing, and that the goods in question were made from bamboo or grass stock and answered the trade description of cartridge paper. The fact that the paper was also capable of use for printing did not exclude it from a specific entry for cartridge paper, since a general description could not override the more specific tariff designation. The affidavits relied upon by the petitioners established only that the paper was used for offset printing and did not dislodge its trade identity as cartridge paper.

Conclusion: The paper was correctly classified as cartridge paper under Item 17 of the First Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944, and not as printing and writing paper.

Ratio Decidendi: For tariff classification, the specific commercial and trade description of goods prevails over their possible use for another purpose, and a specific tariff entry excludes a broader competing entry when the goods answer the specific trade description.

---