Quarterly return requirement: units availing specified central excise exemptions must file production and removal returns with Commissioner.
The amendment to rule 12(1) of the Central Excise Rules, 2002 requires assessees availing specified exemption notifications to file quarterly returns, in the form specified by the Board, reporting production and removal of goods and other relevant particulars with the jurisdictional Commissioner of Central Excise within twenty days after the close of the relevant quarter, with a transitional deadline for the quarter ending at the end of December, 2007.

Reconstitution of review panels under statutory authority reassigns Chief Commissioners for Bangalore and Chennai review cases.
Amendment under section 35B substitutes the Table in Notification No. 6/2007-Central Excise (N.T.) to reconstitute review committees: for Bangalore the committee comprises the Commissioner of Central Excise and Service Tax, Large Taxpayers Unit, Bangalore and the Commissioner of Central Excise, Bangalore-III, with the Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeals), Large Taxpayers Unit, Bangalore as the jurisdictional reviewer; for Chennai the committee comprises the Commissioner of Central Excise and Service Tax, Large Taxpayers Unit, Chennai and the Commissioner of Central Excise, Chennai-I, with the Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeals), Large Taxpayers Unit, Chennai as the jurisdictional reviewer.

Reconstitution of Chief Commissioners panel designates specific Chief Commissioners and Commissioners for Bangalore and Chennai review committees.
Substitutes the table in Notification No. 5/2007-Central Excise (N.T.) to reconstitute review committees under section 35B(1B) of the Central Excise Act by naming the Chief Commissioner of Central Excise and Service Tax (Large Taxpayers Unit) together with the Chief Commissioner of Customs, and the Commissioner of Central Excise and Service Tax (Large Taxpayers Unit) as the designated committee members for the Bangalore and Chennai jurisdictions.

Compounding of offences: payment of duty, penalty and interest made mandatory before compounding application is accepted.
The amendment makes payment of duty, penalty and interest a mandatory prerequisite to allow compounding applications and adds a form field to capture payment details. It replaces the compounding-amount rule with a Table prescribing lump-sum and percentage-based compounding amounts for various offences under section 9(1), and provides that where multiple offence categories arise in respect of the same goods with identical duty evasion or CENVAT amounts, the higher prescribed compounding amount applies.

Review committee appointments designate Lucknow and Kanpur Commissioners and the Appeals Commissioner, Lucknow, for review jurisdiction.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs amends Notification No. 25/2005-Central Excise (N.T.) by substituting the table entry at Sl. No. 39 to designate the Commissioner of Central Excise, Lucknow and the Commissioner of Central Excise, Kanpur as the officers for review cases, and the Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeals), Lucknow for appellate review, effected by Notification No. 41/2007 Central Excise (N.T.).

Compounded levy per packing machine permits monthly duty payment based on pouch retail price bands and conditions.
An optional compounded levy allows pan masala and gutkha manufacturers packing in pouch filling machines to pay a fixed monthly duty per packing machine at rates tied to the pouch retail sale price; multiple tracks/lines are individual machines. No CENVAT credit is allowed and payments must be in cash. Permission is obtained by application (deemed granted if not decided in two working days), duty is paid before each month with intimation, additions/removals require officer supervision and removed/sealed machines remain chargeable; defaults attract duty recalculation, confiscation and penalties.

Large taxpayer unit eligibility expanded to include Chennai income tax commissioners alongside Bangalore commissioners.
The Central Government amends Notification No.20/2006 Central Excise (N.T.) by substituting, after item (iii) of paragraph 2, the previous reference to two Bangalore Chief Commissioners (with exclusions) with a revised list naming Chief Commissioner of Income tax Bangalore I (other than revenue district of Tumkur), Chief Commissioner of Income tax Bangalore II (other than district of Kolar), and additionally Chief Commissioner of Income tax Chennai I and Chief Commissioner of Income tax Chennai II, under the authority of sub rule (ea) of rule 2 of the Central Excise Rules, 2002 and sub rule (cccc) of rule 2 of the Service Tax Rules, 1994.

CENVAT credit reversal on removal of capital goods requires payment with a time based reduction of the recoverable credit.
Where capital goods on which CENVAT credit has been taken are removed after being used, the manufacturer or provider of output service must pay an amount equal to the CENVAT credit taken on those capital goods, subject to a time based reduction of the payable amount measured from the date of taking the CENVAT credit and decreasing the recoverable credit by a fixed fraction for each prescribed time interval or part thereof.

Eligibility for Chairman restricted to serving Commission members with a minimum remaining term on vacancy, per amended recruitment rules.
The amendment substitutes the eligibility provision for appointment to the post of Chairman, restricting selection to serving Members of the Commission who possess a minimum remaining service period on the date the vacancy arises; the Rules are cited as the Amendment Rules, 2007 and commence on publication in the Official Gazette.

Excise exemption for naval fuels conditioned on supplier registration, recordkeeping and monthly reconciliation, with duty for unaccounted supplies.
Amends the Central Excise notification by exempting fuels under Chapter Heading 2710 when manufactured and supplied by Indian Oil Corporation Limited, or procured by IOCL from another manufacturer and supplied, as stores for consumption on board Indian Navy or Coast Guard vessels, subject to IOCL obtaining registration with the jurisdictional Assistant/Deputy Commissioner, maintaining records of receipt and supply, submitting monthly reconciliation statements and proving supplies to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional central excise officer; non-compliance attracts payment of excise duty on unaccounted fuels with interest.

Effective Rate of Duty: agricultural grade zinc sulphate used as a micronutrient now attracts nil duty under amended notification.
The Government amends Notification No. 4/2006-Central Excise by inserting S.No. 51A to list tariff heading 2833 29 for agricultural grade zinc sulphate ordinarily used as a micronutrient, specifying an effective rate of duty of Nil under Notification No. 36/2007-Central Excise dated 9 October 2007.

Excise exemption for polyester fibre and yarn when certified for handloom Poly Vastra, subject to reversal of input credit.
A Central Government direction under section 11C provides that excise duty need not be paid on specified polyester staple fibres and yarns manufactured or purchased by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission or approved organisations for defined past periods, provided an authorised KVIC certificate confirms use solely in handloom Poly Vastra and the claimant unit reverses any input credit taken on inputs used in manufacture.

Effective rate of duty set to nil for brooms of twigs by amendment to central excise notification.
The Central Government, exercising powers under section 5A of the Central Excise Act, 1944, inserts a new tariff entry S.No.75B to Notification No. 6/2006 Central Excise for brooms "consisting of twigs or other vegetable materials, bound together, with or without handles" and prescribes a nil effective rate of duty for that entry by Notification No. 35/2007 Central Excise dated 20 September 2007.

Rebate denial for exempted manufacturers excludes rebate where exporter benefits from specified excise exemption notifications.
The amendment to Notification No. 19/2004-CE (N.T.) inserts clause (h) specifying that where exported goods are manufactured by a manufacturer availing any of the listed excise exemption notifications, the rebate under Notification No. 19/2004-CE (N.T.) shall not be admissible.

Credit restriction on additional customs duty requires dealers to state non-admissibility on resale invoices under Customs Tariff Act.
The amendment requires that where a dealer receives imported goods under an invoice indicating that credit of the additional duty of customs is not admissible, the dealer-whether a first stage or second stage dealer-must, on resale of those imported goods, indicate on the resale invoice that credit of the additional duty shall not be admissible.

CENVAT credit restriction: additional customs duty credit barred where invoice states no credit admissible.
The amendment inserts a proviso to the CENVAT Credit Rules providing that credit of the additional duty of customs under the Customs Tariff Act shall not be allowed if the invoice or supplementary invoice bears an indication that no credit of the said additional duty shall be admissible, thereby conditioning credit entitlement on the supplier's invoicing statement.

Duty payment deadline extended by one day for payments made via internet banking; other methods retain existing deadline.
Amendment differentiates excise duty payment timelines by payment mode: payments made electronically via internet banking are due one day later than the prior uniform deadlines, while payments by other methods retain the existing deadlines; the amendment is effective upon publication in the Official Gazette.

Reversal of CENVAT credit required where duty remission under the prescribed excise remission provision occurs.
The CENVAT Credit (Eighth Amendment) Rules, 2007 insert sub rule (5C) in rule 3 of the CENVAT Credit Rules, 2004, providing that where duty on goods manufactured or produced is remitted under the excise remission provision, the CENVAT credit taken on inputs used in their manufacture or production shall be reversed.

Cenvat credit amendment adds a notification reference to procedural provisos, broadening listed exemptions' applicability under CENVAT rules.
The amendment adds a prior notification reference into the proviso lists that determine admissibility and procedural application of CENVAT credit: the specified notification is inserted as an additional enumerated item after the existing seventh item in the designated proviso of rule 12 and in two provisos of rule 12A (sub rule (1) and sub rule (4)), and the rules commence on publication in the Official Gazette.

Effective rate of duty: new tariff entries add central excise liability for certain plaster and related pharmaceutical goods.
The Central Government, exercising statutory authority, amends the principal excise notification by inserting two new table entries: 62B (tariff heading 3005 90 40 - "All goods") and 62C (tariff heading 3005 90 90 - "Plaster of paris (pharmaceutical grade)"), each assigned an effective rate of duty of 8 percent by Notification No. 34/2007-Central Excise dated 2nd August 2007.