TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2015 (11) TMI 210
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.... of the case are that the appellant-assessees are manufacturers of paper and they were paying duty under Notification 4/2006 dated 1.3.2006 as amended. Appellant No. 1 was paying duty @ 8% vide serial No. 91 of the Schedule to the said Notification while appellant No. 2 was also paying duty at the said rate but as per serial No. 93. Since they were paying the excise duty on the final product, they were availing cenvat credit on the inputs. 2. Revenue's contention is that their goods are covered by serial No. 90 of the said Notification which prescribes nil rate of duty, subject to the conditions prescribed in serial No. 10 of annexure to the said Notification. Further, since the first clearances of 3500 MT of the goods are allowed to....
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....sarkanda) or rags. 8% 10 91. 48 Paper and paperboard or articles made therefrom manufactured, starting from the stage of pulp, in a factory, and such pulp contains not less than 75% by weight of pulp made from materials other than bamboo, hard woods, soft woods, reeds (other than sarkanda) or rags 12% 11 92. 4801 00 Newsprint, in reels Nil - 93. 4802, 4804, 4805, 4807, 4808 or 4810 All goods 12% Annexure 10. (1) This exemption shall apply only to the paper and paperboard or articles made therefrom cleared for home consumption from a factory, in any financial year, up to first clearances of an aggregate quantity not exceeding 3500 Metric Tonnes. (2....
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....ttached thereto for making bamboo or wood pulp. The second condition is the manufacturer who avails the exemption under Notification 8/20039CE dated 1/3/2003 will not be eligible for the present exemption. Serial No. 90 prescribes nil rate of duty. Further, the nil rate of duty is subject to two conditions prescribed under serial No. 10. The first condition is that nil rate is applicable in any financial year upto first clearances of an aggregate quantity not exceeding 3500MT. The second condition is that the manufacturer shall not be availing the benefit of Notification 8/2003-CE dated 1.3.2003. The Revenue's contention is that for the initial clearance of 3500 MT, the rate of duty is nil and there are no conditions for the said cleara....
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.... duty of excise on such goods. Thus, a bare reading of the above Section indicates that a manufacturer will not have an option to pay the duty only where the goods are exempt and the exemption granted is absolute. In the present case, serial No. 90 has two conditions. The first condition limits exemption for goods cleared for home consumption from a factory in any financial year upto first clearances of an aggregate quantity not exceeding 3500 MT. Further, there is another condition about non-availment of Notification 8/2003. In our view, in view of the above mentioned two conditions, it cannot be said that serial No. 90 provides absolute exemption to paper and paper board or articles made therefrom manufactured, starting from the stage of ....