Marketability is essential for central excise; captive crude PVC films not treated as excisable goods despite tariff coverage.

Crude PVC films used captively in the manufacture of leather cloth were held not to attract central excise because marketability is an essential ingredient of "goods". A tariff entry alone does not make an item dutiable unless it is a distinct commodity known in the market or capable of being bought and sold as such. On the facts found, the films were not marketable and there was no evidence that they were sold in the market as crude PVC films. Duty was therefore not leviable.

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Issues: Whether crude PVC films, used captively in the manufacture of leather cloth and other end-products, were dutiable as excisable goods under the tariff entry despite not being marketable or known in the market as such.

Analysis: Excise duty is attracted on manufacture of goods, and for an article to be "goods" it must emerge as a distinct commodity known in the market or capable of being bought and sold. A tariff entry by itself does not make a product dutiable unless the article answers the description of goods in the commercial sense. On the facts found by the Appellate Collector, the crude PVC films were not marketable, were not sold in the market as such, and had no evidence to the contrary before the Tribunal. The Tribunal erred in treating marketability as irrelevant merely because the product fell within the tariff description.

Conclusion: The crude PVC films were not excisable goods and no duty was leviable on them; the appeal succeeded for the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: For levy of central excise, marketability is an essential ingredient, and an article falling within a tariff description is not dutiable unless it is goods known to the market or capable of being sold as such.

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