Excise exemption: staged duty relief for specified goods in 1985-86 subject to investment and turnover caps.
Notification grants staged excise duty relief for excisable goods (except sandalwood oil) formerly under Tariff Item 68 cleared for home consumption between 1 April 1985 and 31 March 1986. Relief comprises three aggregate tiers giving full exemption on initial clearances, partial exemption on the next tier limited to duty in excess of twenty-five per cent, and further partial exemption on the subsequent tier limited to duty in excess of seventy-five per cent. Eligibility requires capital investment below a prescribed cap certified by an Assistant Collector and compliance with per-factory and manufacturer turnover exclusions; certain prior-notification eligibilities are preserved. Explanatory rules address investment valuation, exclusion of nil-rated or otherwise exempt clearances, and kiln-firing treatment for ceramic insulators.

Excise exemption for specified goods: tiered, value-based relief for clearances subject to aggregation and declaration conditions.
Exemption grants staged, value-based relief for clearances of sixty-eight specified excisable goods between 1 April 1985 and 31 March 1986: full exemption for initial clearances up to a prescribed aggregate value and graduated partial exemptions for subsequent clearance bands, with aggregation computed separately by serial number. Relief is unavailable if prior-year aggregate clearances of all excisable goods exceeded a prescribed ceiling; late-start manufacturers may obtain exemption on filing a declaration and subject to year-end aggregate limits. Valuation, exclusions for nil-rated or other exempt clearances, intra-factory input usages, and specific kiln-firing valuation rules are prescribed.

Excise exemption for paints and allied goods: reduced duty on home clearances for eligible manufacturers, subject to investment caps.
Exemption grants a reduced ad valorem excise duty of two per cent on specified pigments, paints and related goods manufactured with power and cleared for home consumption between 1 April 1985 and 31 March 1986, up to an aggregate clearance value of rupees one crore. Eligibility requires that the industrial unit's capital investment in plant and machinery not exceed rupees twenty lakhs as certified by an Assistant Collector of Central Excise; prior clearances under an earlier notification are included in the aggregate, manufacturers availing a different contemporaneous exemption are excluded, and Zinc Oxide is specifically excluded.

Excise duty exemption for goods under heading 85.18 limits excess duty where investment and clearance thresholds are met.
Exempts goods under heading No. 85.18 from excise duty above the reduced ad valorem rate where the industrial unit's capital investment, taken at face value and excluding permanently removed or unfit plant and machinery, does not exceed a prescribed threshold, and where aggregate clearances of those goods for home consumption in the preceding financial year did not exceed a prescribed turnover ceiling; the exemption is subject to an annual cap on first clearances at the reduced rate and excludes manufacturers or units exceeding specified turnover limits. Value is as statutorily defined.

Excise exemption for aerated waters reduces duty on initial clearances subject to value-based eligibility and compliance.
Exemption for aerated waters cleared for home consumption in the stated financial year is granted subject to aggregate value caps: full exemption for certain non-common-trademark initial clearances and partial exemption for common trade mark clearances, with similar but adjusted concessions for immediately following clearances. Manufacturer- and factory-level exclusions apply where prior-year clearances exceed prescribed thresholds; new or late-starting manufacturers may obtain the exemption on filing a declaration and remaining within the thresholds. Definitions limit scope and valuation follows the statutory provision.

Excise exemption for pigments and synthetic organic dyes allows nil-duty first clearances subject to annual aggregate value and eligibility conditions.
Exemption grants nil excise duty on first clearances for home consumption of pigments and synthetic organic dyes within specified tariff sub-headings, subject to an annual aggregate value ceiling and exclusion where a manufacturer's or factory's aggregate clearances of all excisable goods in the preceding year exceeded that ceiling. Manufacturers or factories that did not clear the goods in the preceding year, or began clearing after the specified date, may claim the exemption upon filing a declaration and provided actual annual clearances remain within the ceiling; valuation follows the statutory formula and certain other whole-duty exemptions are excluded from the aggregate calculation.

Excise exemption for pigments and paints manufactured without power, subject to proprietor-linked exclusions and value-based limits.
Exemption from excise duty applies to pigments, colours, paints, enamels, varnishes, blacks and cellulose lacquers manufactured in a factory where none of those products is produced with the aid of power. The exemption is inapplicable if the manufacturer, or any partner in a partnership manufacturer, has proprietary interest in another factory using power to produce the same products and where production in that other factory exceeds a specified value; 'value' is determined under the valuation provision of the Central Excises and Salt Act.

Exemption for pigments and synthetic dyes limits excise liability on initial clearances subject to annual value thresholds and eligibility conditions.
Exemption applies to pigments and synthetic organic dyes and their preparations for first clearances for home consumption, reducing excise duty in excess of fifty per cent of the tariff levy, subject to an aggregate value ceiling for combined clearances under this and a related notification in the financial year. Eligibility is limited by prior year manufacturer and factory clearance thresholds; new manufacturers or factories may claim the relief upon filing a declaration and remaining within the prescribed clearance limits. Value is determined per statutory valuation and fully exempt clearances under other notifications are excluded from aggregate computations.

Excise exemption for certain footwear manufactured in small-scale units, subject to workforce or power-use limits.
The notification exempts footwear under the footwear tariff classification from the whole of excise duty, provided the manufacturer operates in one or more factories employing not more than forty-nine workers on any day in the preceding twelve months, or the total equivalent power used in manufacture does not exceed two horsepower; the exemption is time-limited to the terminal date specified in March 1986.

Excise duty exemption caps ad valorem duty on radios, with reduced rates for qualifying small manufacturers under clearance limits.
The notification caps excise duty on radios (including transistor sets) under tariff heading 85.27 at specified ad valorem rates (fifteen per cent for one- or two-band sets; twenty per cent for others) and provides a ten per cent ad valorem reduction of those rates for units meeting capital investment and prior-year clearance value conditions, subject to exclusion where the manufacturer's aggregate clearances of excisable goods exceeded a separate threshold; capital investment is measured at face value when made and "value" follows section 4 of the Central Excises and Salt Act.

Excise exemption for thin PVC films contingent on extrusion production and industrial unit meeting capital investment ceiling.
Exemption from excise duty is provided for Polyvinyl Chloride films below the specified thickness when produced by the extrusion process, by an industrial unit whose capital investment in plant and machinery at initial installation does not exceed the prescribed ceiling, with satisfaction of the investment criterion to be certified by an officer not below the rank of Assistant Collector of Central Excise; the exemption is limited to the period stated in the notification.

Exemption to small-scale units suspended for specified home consumption clearances during late March, narrowing the notification's scope.
An amendment inserts paragraph 6 into the prior notification, providing that the notification shall not apply to clearances of specified goods for home consumption during the period beginning 25th March and ending 31st March 1986, thereby creating a temporal exclusion from the exemption for small scale units.

Rescission of central excise notifications under rule 8(1) removes the force of specified prior notifications.
In exercise of the authority conferred by sub-rule (1) of rule 8 of the Central Excise Rules, 1944, the Central Government rescinds the following notifications: No. 56/75-Central Excises dated 1-3-1975; No. 57/75-Central Excises dated 1-3-1975; No. 116/75-Central Excises dated 30-4-1975; and No. 12/79-Central Excises dated 6-1-1979.

Exemption for specified excisable goods: duty waived when produced by government, khadi bodies, village industries or prisons.
Exemption from excise duty is provided for goods under the Central Excise Tariff when manufactured by Central Government factories for departmental use; by State Government factories for purposes Parliament deems incidental to government functions; by village industries certified by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission and marketed under the Act; or when manufactured in prisons, with "prison" defined to include subsidiary jails, reformatories and similar institutions.

Exemption for small scale units expanded to include clearances chargeable to nil rate of duty, broadening relief scope.
Amendment expands the exemption for small scale units by inserting the phrase "which are chargeable to nil rate of duty or" into Explanation II of Notification No. 175/86-Central Excises, thereby including clearances chargeable to nil rate of duty within the scope of the exemption.

Input duty credit for specified intermediates allowed when accompanied by duty evidence documents, subject to turnover based exclusion.
Credit of duty on specified inputs used in manufacture of intermediate products is allowable under rule 57A when those intermediate products are received for use in manufacture of listed final products; specified inputs include polyvinyl chloride and PVC compound used for insulated electric wires and cables, and credit is conditional on presentation of documents evidencing payment of duty (Gate Pass, AR-1, Bill of Entry or other CBEC specified documents). The notification excludes manufacturers whose aggregate clearances of excisable goods for home consumption exceeded the statutory turnover threshold in the preceding year.

Input credit for specified inputs used in intermediate and final product manufacture allowed subject to notification and conditions.
Amendments redefine inputs to include materials manufactured and used within the factory and paints and packaging; permit sending materials out of the factory for testing, repair, refining, reconditioning or other necessary operations provided waste is returned; require declarations tying inputs to intended final products; and introduce rule 57 J empowering the Government to notify specified inputs used in intermediate products for duty credit under rule 57A subject to conditions and restrictions.

Tariff substitution: central excise notification replaces serial entry to classify machinery under revised tariff headings '82 or 84'.
The Central Government, under sub rule (1) of rule 8 of the Central Excise Rules, 1944, amends Notification No. 64/86-Central Excises by substituting in the Table at serial No. 2 the entry in column (2) with "82 or 84", thereby changing the tariff column entry applicable to the item listed at serial No. 2 for machinery, appliances and implements.

Excise exemption: specified goods including steam, bleach liquor and coffee husk exempted from whole excise duty under notification.
Notification No. 195/86-C.E. exercises rule 8(1) authority under the Central Excise Rules, 1944 to exempt the goods listed in the annexed Table from the whole of the duty of excise leviable under section 3 of the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944, specifically identifying steam (Chapter 28), bleach liquor (28.05) and coffee husk and coffee skin (0901.90).

Exemption for gold strips, wires, sheets, plates and foils used in jewellery manufacture removed from central excise liability.
Amendment adds an exemption in the notification schedule for strips, wires, sheets, plates and foils of gold when used in the manufacture of articles of jewellery and parts thereof, effectuated under sub rule (1) of rule 8 of the Central Excise Rules, 1944.