Marketable commodity status of intermediary friction cloth determines whether it is subject to excise when it is sold in the market. Whether friction cloth arising during manufacture of T.R. beltings, V belts and conveyor belts is a marketable commodity determines its excisability. The department treats friction cloth as marketable and excisable if it is shown to have a market or be capable of sale. The High Court proceeded on an erroneous assumption that the intermediary product was not sold; the Supreme Court found no clear finding on marketability and directed that marketability is the operative criterion for assessing excise liability.