1996 (8) TMI 101

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....ers to get stone quartz and chip with the help of machines is an industrial undertaking and in that view of the matter in granting it investment allowance under section 32A." The assessee is a firm registered under the Indian Partnership Act. The firm carried on business of converting big boulders into quartz and small chips with the help of plant and machinery particularly, the crusher. During the relevant assessment year 1983-84, the assessee-firm claimed investment, allowance for Rs. 45,358 under section 32A of the Act on stone crusher claiming to be an industrial undertaking. But the Assessing Officer under the provisions of sections 32A(1) and 32A(2) of the Act held that the stone crusher would not come in the category of machinery ....

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....s court. Hence, the present reference. We have heard Mr. U. Bhuyan, learned junior standing counsel appearing on behalf of the Revenue, and Mr. R. K. Joshi, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the assessee. Mr. Bhuyan has strenuously argued before us that the Tribunal under misconception of law gave an erroneous finding while holding that the crushing of stone boulders into stone chips with the help of a machine was in fact a manufacturing process and the business of the assessee was an industrial undertaking. According to Mr. Bhuyan, this finding is absolutely erroneous, and the allowance granted by the Tribunal under section 32A for Rs. 45,358 was also erroneous. In this connection, Mr. Bhuyan has submitted that in order to get bene....

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....st emerge having a distinctive name, character or use." From the above decision of the court, the change is not sufficient, it must become a new substance known to the market, as in the present case. While dealing with the question of manufacturing process, the Madras High Court in CIT v. M. R. Gopal [1965] 58 ITR 598 observed thus : "'Manufacture', as we find from Webster's Dictionary, means : 'Anything made from raw materials by the hand, by machinery, or by art, as clothes, iron utensils, shoes, machinery, etc. ; a manual occupation or trade ; to produce by labour especially now, according to an organised plan and with division of labour and usually with machinery'. It seems to us to be unarguable having regard to the meaning of....