Excise duty exemption certification: countersignature by Chief Engineer in Joint Secretary rank must be accepted. The notification defines the line ministry as the ministry nominated for a project by the Government through the Department of Economic Affairs, and requires the exemption certificate to be countersigned by an officer not below the rank of a Joint Secretary in that ministry. A Chief Engineer in the rank of Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways satisfies the countersignature requirement, and certificates issued by the Superintending Engineer and so countersigned should be honoured.