Brand name exemption under SSI notification turns on eligibility at clearance date, not later registration.

Exemption under Notification No. 175/86-C.E. depended on the brand name owner's status at the time the goods were cleared, not on any later SSI registration. Because the goods were cleared during a period when the brand name owner was not yet eligible for the exemption, the embargo in paragraph 7 applied. The claimed benefit was therefore unavailable for the disputed period.

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Issues: Whether the respondents were entitled to the benefit of Notification No. 175/86-C.E. for goods cleared during the disputed period when the brand name owner obtained SSI registration only later.

Analysis: The exemption was claimed on the footing that the brand name belonged to a unit which later became a registered small scale industry. The relevant consideration was the status of the brand name owner at the time the goods were cleared, not its subsequent registration. Since the goods in dispute were cleared during a period when the brand name owner was not yet eligible for the exemption, the embargo in paragraph 7 of the notification applied.

Conclusion: The respondents were not entitled to the benefit of Notification No. 175/86-C.E. for the period in dispute.

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