Common ownership requires clubbing of clearances for small scale exemption under Notification No. 8/2003-CE.

Identical partnership ownership with equal profit-sharing justified treating two units as commonly owned for small scale industry exemption purposes. Under Notification No. 8/2003-CE, the exemption applies to the aggregate clearances of a manufacturer from one or more factories, so the clearances of both units had to be clubbed for the eligibility limit. The objection that no show cause notice was issued to the other unit was rejected because the clubbing issue arose from common ownership within partnership firms, not from separate ownership. The other unit's clearances were therefore validly includable in the appellant's aggregate clearances, and denial of exemption was upheld.

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Issues: Whether the value of clearances of a second unit, owned by the same partners, could be clubbed with the appellant unit for determining eligibility under the small scale industry exemption.

Analysis: The units had identical partners with equal profit-sharing and were therefore treated as being under common ownership. The exemption under Notification No. 8/2003-CE applies to the aggregate value of clearances by a manufacturer from one or more factories, and not separately for each factory. On that basis, the clearances of both units were required to be aggregated for the exemption limit. The objection that no show cause notice had been issued to the other unit was rejected because the clubbing arose from common ownership within partnership firms, not from two independent entities of different ownership.

Conclusion: The value of the other unit was validly includable in the appellant's aggregate clearances, and the denial of exemption was upheld.

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