Suppressed excisable production can be proved by electricity use, admissions, and surrounding circumstances under Rule 173E.

Determination of suppressed excisable production may rest on electricity consumption when supported by admissions and surrounding circumstances, and it is not arbitrary merely because the assessee disputes the calculation or offers alternative explanations. The Collector was entitled under Rule 173E of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 to assess power consumption alongside installed capacity, raw material use, and the overall conduct of the factory. On the record, the findings of clandestine removals and duty liability were upheld because the evidence showed deliberate concealment and the adopted figures were not shown to be capricious or unsupported.

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Issues: Whether the Collector's determination of suppressed production and clandestine removals, made substantially on electricity consumption along with surrounding circumstances, was arbitrary or without basis and liable to be interfered with.

Analysis: The material showed unaccounted clearances of tread rubber, admissions by the managing partner that production and clearances had been concealed to remain within exemption limits, and corroborative circumstances pointing to deliberate suppression. The appellants' reliance on a defective electricity meter, alleged job work, and claimed installed capacity did not displace the Collector's conclusion. In applying Rule 173E of the Central Excise Rules, 1944, the Collector was entitled to consider power consumption together with other relevant factors such as installed capacity, raw material use, and the overall conduct of the factory. The record did not show that the determination was capricious or unsupported; rather, the figures adopted were, if anything, conservative because they were based on low meter readings.

Conclusion: The challenge to the Collector's findings failed and the determination of suppressed production and duty liability was upheld.

Final Conclusion: The appeal was dismissed as the impugned order disclosed sufficient evidentiary foundation and no ground for interference.

Ratio Decidendi: A determination of suppressed excisable production under Rule 173E of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 is sustainable when supported by electricity consumption, corroborative admissions, and surrounding circumstances, even if the assessee disputes the calculations and points to alternative explanations.

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