Project Import concession depends on timely contract registration before customs clearance or warehousing order is made.

Project Import benefit under Heading 84.66 was available only if the contract had been registered in accordance with the Project Imports (Registration of Contract) Regulations, 1965 before the customs authority passed the clearance or warehousing order. An earlier application did not by itself secure the concession, because it still had to be supported by the prescribed particulars, documents and sponsoring authority's recommendation. As the recommendation and registration came only after the warehousing order, the statutory precondition was not met. The claim for project import concession was therefore unavailable, and denial of refund was upheld.

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Issues: Whether the appellants were entitled to the benefit of Project Import under Heading 84.66 despite the contract having been registered only after the goods had been ordered to be deposited in a warehouse.

Analysis: The benefit under Heading 84.66 was held to depend on registration of the contract as a Project Import before the proper officer passed an order permitting clearance for home consumption or deposit in a warehouse. The application filed earlier did not by itself confer the concession, because the Project Imports (Registration of Contract) Regulations, 1965 required the application to be supported by the prescribed particulars and documents, including the sponsoring authority's recommendation. The record showed that the recommendation from the Directorate of Industries came only later, after which the contract was registered, and the registration therefore occurred after the warehousing order had already been made. On these facts, the statutory precondition for availing the project import concession was not satisfied.

Conclusion: The claim for Project Import benefit was rightly rejected and the order denying refund was upheld.

Final Conclusion: The appeal failed because the project import concession was unavailable when the contract was not registered within the time and manner required for clearance of the warehoused goods.

Ratio Decidendi: The concession under Project Import provisions is available only when the contract is registered in compliance with the prescribed regulations before the customs clearance or warehousing order is made.

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