TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1996 (4) TMI 279
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....ding that the appellants were not eligible for Modvat credit on Hydrochloric Acid and Caustic Soda which were claimed by them to be inputs for their final product, Carbon Black. The Commissioner has stated in his impugned order that the show cause notice proposed disallowance of credit on the two items in question on two grounds :- (1) These are not the inputs for their final product, Carbon Black but for steam, an intermediate product. (2) They had submitted wrong and insufficient declaration under Rule 57G. He has observed that in the declaration filed by them, the appellants had declared Carbon Black as the final product but had left the Column "intermediate products" blank. Against the disputed items caustic soda and ....
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....n. There was no suppression, it was contended by Shri Madhavan in view of their claim being covered in their favour by the decisions cited by him. 3. The learned Departmental Representative, Shri D.S. Malik rebutted the arguments and supported the impugned order. 4. I have noted the submissions. I have perused the record. The Commissioner had held that the first ground raised in the show cause was not sustainable. That ground was that the two chemicals in question are not the inputs of their final product, carbon black but are inputs of steam, an intermediate product. He held that this ground was not sustainable because if steam is an intermediate product in the manufacture of carbon black and these chemicals are inputs of s....
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....evant portion from the order passed in the said appeal is extracted below :- "4.  I have considered the submissions and perused the record. I find that the Collector (Appeals) has held that caustic soda and hydrochloric acid are admittedly used for maintenance of plant and machinery and hence cannot be called inputs within the definition of Rule 57A of Central Excise Rules, 1944. He has then observed that the inputs used in the maintenance of plant and machinery have specifically been excluded from the definition of inputs as per Rule 57A and hence the appellants were not entitled to avail Modvat credit on such inputs. He has then proceeded to observe that these inputs are not directly consumed for manufacture of finished goods and ....
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....nsumed. The requirement is that these should be used in or in relation to the manufacture of the final products. The scope of the expression "in relation to the manufacture of final product" came up for decision recently before the Larger Bench of the Tribunal in Shri Ramakrishna Steel Industries Limited v. Collector of Central Excise, Madras - 1996 (82) E.L.T. 575 (Tribunal). The relevant observations in this regard in the said decision are as follows :- "14.  we are here dealing with a case where inputs are not necessarily required to be used in the manufacture of final product, but are used "in relation to the manufacture" of the final product, which is an expression of considerably larger import. The words "in relation to the ma....