Just a moment...

Top
Help
×

By creating an account you can:

Logo TaxTMI
>
Call Us / Help / Feedback

Contact Us At :

E-mail: [email protected]

Call / WhatsApp at: +91 99117 96707

For more information, Check Contact Us

FAQs :

To know Frequently Asked Questions, Check FAQs

Most Asked Video Tutorials :

For more tutorials, Check Video Tutorials

Submit Feedback/Suggestion :

Email :
Please provide your email address so we can follow up on your feedback.
Category :
Description :
Min 15 characters0/2000
TMI Blog
Home / TMI Blogs / RSS

2021 (10) TMI 251

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....ds which are "Ores". 2. After scrutiny of the documents submitted by the appellant, the Department was of the view that the imported goods have been subjected to certain physical processes to remove foreign matter and that the subject goods have lost the characteristics of ore and are 'concentrate' and hence, not eligible for exemption of CVD. The Bills-of-Entry were assessed by levying CVD at the rate of 12% without extending the benefit of the exemption Notification. The appellant paid the total Duty of Rs. 94,60,772/- for the above Bills-of-Entry. The appellant vide letters dated 23.01.2013 and 08.02.2013 contended that the consignments imported by them were Zirconium sand; that these were ore and cannot be treated as 'concentrate' to deny exemption of CVD as per Sl. No. 56 of Notification No.12/2012-C.Ex. dated 17.03.2012. 3. After due process of law, the Original Authority vide Order-in-Original No. 20629/2013 dated 05.04.2013 held that the goods imported are Zirconium concentrates and not Zirconium ores. The exemption under Sl. No. 56 of the Central Excise Notification No. 12/2012-C.Ex. was denied and the collection of CVD at the rate of 12% for the goods was sustained.....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....ditional duty rate specified in the corresponding entry in column (5) of the said Table, subject to any of the conditions, specified in the Annexure to this notification, the condition number of which is mentioned in the corresponding entry in column (6) of the said table. TABLE S. No. Chapter or Heading or Sub-heading or tariff item   Description of goods Standard rate Additional duty rate Condition No. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) 1. 1 Animals and birds imported by zoo Nil - - . . . .           117. 2601 to 2617 All goods 2.5% - - (Emphasis applied) "[Notification No. 12/2012-C.E., dated 17-3-2012] Exemption and effective rates of duty for specified goods of Chapters 1 to 98 - Jumbo Exemption - Notification Nos. 3/2005-C.E., 3/2006-C.E., 4/2006-C.E., 5/2006-C.E., 6/2006-C.E. and 10/2006-C.E. replaced In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 5A of the Central Excise Act, 1944 (1 of 1944) and in supersession of (i) notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of Finance (Departmen....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

.... day of March, 2013. Explanation 1. - For the purposes of this notification, the rates specified in column (4) of the said Table are ad valorem rates, unless otherwise specified. Explanation 2. - For the purposes of this notification, "brand name" means a brand name, whether registered or not, that is to say, a name or a mark, such as a symbol, monogram, label, signature or invented words or any writing which is used in relation to a product, for the purpose of indicating, or so as to indicate, a connection in the course of trade between the product and a person using such name or mark with or without any indication of the identity of that person. TABLE Sl. No. Chapter or heading or sub-heading or tariff item of the First Schedule Description of excisable goods Rate Condition No. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 1 0402 91 10 0402 99 20 Condensed milk Nil - . . . .         56 2601 to 2617 Ores Nil - (Emphasis applied) 4.2.1 It is submitted by the Learned Counsel that the goods imported by the appellant are only ore and not concentrate. In the Bill-of-Entry, the go....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....se aimed at concentrating the ores. For the purposes of headings 26.01 to 26.17, the term "concentrates" applies to ores which have had part or all of the foreign matter removed by special treatments, either because such foreign matter might hamper subsequent metallurgical operations or with a view to economical transport. Processes to which products of headings 26.01 to 26.17 may have been submitted include physical, physico-chemical or chemical operations, provided they are normal to the preparation of the ores for the extraction of metal. With the exception of changes resulting from calcination, roasting or firing (with or without agglomeration), such operations must not alter the chemical composition of the basic compound which furnishes the desired metal. The physical or physico-chemical operations include crushing, grinding, magnetic separation, gravimetric separation, flotation, screening, grading, agglomeration of powders (e.g., by sintering or pelleting) into grains, balls or briquettes (whether or not with the addition of small quantities of binders), drying, calcination, roasting to oxidise, reduce or magnetise the ore, etc. (but not roasting f....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....jecting the product to special treatment processes, as mentioned in the HSN Explanatory Note and the C.B.E.C. Instructions dated 17.02.2012, the ores cannot be treated as concentrates. 4.6 Further, as per the HSN Explanatory Note, calcination and roasting are important processes for converting ores into concentrates and only by these processes the impurities can be removed and will oxidise the ores to get more Zirconium Oxide in the concentrate. That the Department has not been able to establish that the subject goods have undergone any such special treatment processes. The allegation of the Department that the imported goods were subjected to certain physical processes in the nature of cleaning, washing, drying, etc., so as to remove the foreign matter and that hence they have lost their character of ores and are in the nature of concentrates, is without any legal basis. 4.7.1 To support his arguments, he relied upon the decision of the Tribunal in the case of M/s. Classic Microtech Pvt. Ltd. v. Commissioner of Cus., Ahmedabad reported in 2012 (285) E.L.T. 418 (Tri. - Ahmd.). In the said case, it was observed that the Indian Standard IS : 9007-1978 (Reaffirmed 2003) has desc....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

..... The Tribunal held that the benefit of the Notification is applicable to concentrates also. 4.8 He again adverted to the Analysis Certificate of the overseas supplier furnished along with the Bill-of-Lading; that the said certificate shows that the Zirconium Oxide (ZrO2) content is only 65%. For the previous imports, the test report dated 02.11.2007 showed that the composition of ZrO2 (Zirconium Oxide) content is only 63.86% and that the imported goods are 'ore'. That the Department has not sent the sample of the present imports for analysis so as to examine the Zirconium Oxide content. 4.9 The Adjudicating Authority has relied on the Board Circular No. 09/2012-Cus. dated 23.03.2012. This Circular is not at all relevant to the facts of the case. 5. He prayed that the appeal may be allowed. 5.1 Learned Authorized Representative Shri R. Rajaram, appearing on behalf of the Department, supported the findings in the impugned order. He referred to the Board Circular No. 09/2012-Cus. dated 23.03.2012 wherein the issue of applicability of exemption under Sl. No. 4 of Central Excise Notification No. 04/2006-C.E. dated 01.03.2006 was examined. That the issue was with regard to i....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....11 of the Order-in-Original, which is the main basis for the finding that the imported goods are not ore but concentrate. The Circular reads as under:  " [Circular No.9/2012-Cus., dated 23-3-2012] Subject : Applicability of exemption under Sr. No. 4 of the Notification 4/2006 - C.E., dated 1-3-2006 on import of Ore Concentrates - Regarding. Doubts have been raised whether on imports of Ore Concentrate classifiable under Chapter 26 of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, the benefit that is admissible to "Ore" under Serial Number 4 of the Notification No. 4/2006-C.E., dated 1-3-2006 can be granted to the "Concentrate" of that Ore. The issue was taken up for discussion during the Conference of Chief Commissioners of Customs on Tariff and allied matters held in May 2011. 2. The matter related to : (a) whether the term 'Ore' includes Concentrate, and (b) Whether insertion of Chapter Note 4 in the Chapter 26 will have any impact on the admissibility of notification benefit to Concentrates, was examined. The Conference noted the HS definitions of Ore and Concentrate are as follows : "The term 'ore' applies to metalliferous ....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....No. 332/1/2012-TRU dated 17-2-2012] Subject :Dutiability of "iron ore" and "iron ore concentrates" - Clarification regarding. A reference has been received from Bhuwaneswar Zone seeking clarification on the issue of whether "Iron ore lumps and fines" are dutiable as "concentrates" when subjected to crushing, screening, sizing or washing etc. 2. In Budget 2011, a Note was inserted in Chapter 26 of the First Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff to deem the process of converting "Ores" into "Concentrates" as a process amounting to manufacture. Both ores and concentrates are classifiable under Chapter 26 and while the term 'Ore' is defined in Note 2 of the said chapter, the term 'concentrate' is not. HSN Explanatory Note spell out the scope of the term "Concentrate" as under : "For the purposes of Headings 2601-2617, the term 'concentrates' applies to ores which have had part or all of the foreign matter removed by special treatments either because such foreign matter may hamper subsequent metallurgical operations or with a view to economical transport." From the above definition, it is clear that removal of part or all of foreign material ....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....rom Basic Customs Duty of all goods under Chapter 26 (2601 to 2607) i.e., to both ores and concentrates, in terms of Sl. No. 117. The Department cannot decide that the nature of the goods to be 'concentrate' merely by stating that certain processes were undertaken by the appellant. 11. As per the HSN Explanatory notes to Chapter 26, the term "concentrate" applies to ores which have had part or all of the foreign matter removed by special treatment. In the present case, there is no evidence to show that the subject goods have undergone any special treatment. Mere washing, cleaning and drying cannot be considered as special treatment. In the absence of any evidence to show that the subject goods have undergone some special treatment process and also in the absence of any analysis report, we have no other option but to rely on the chemical analysis report of the overseas supplier filed by the appellant along with the Bills-of-Entry. In these certificates of analysis, the content of Zirconium Oxide is shown to be around 65% only. There is no expert evidence adduced by the Department to rebut these chemical analysis reports furnished by the appellant. 12. The Tribunal in the case ....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....21) ============= Document 1 3/3 इंडियन रेअर अर्स लिमिटेड अनुसंधान केंद्र (गत सरकार का उपक्रम - परमाणु ऊर्जा विभाग) INDIAN RARE EARTHS LTD. RESEARCH CENTRE (A Govt. of India Undertaking - Dept of Atomic Energy) ute, 691001, Beach Road, P.B.No.38, Kollam Pin-691 001 Kerala State, INDIA :91 474 2749296.91 474 2763645 Fax: 91 474 2749533 Email: [email protected] 37 gov.in Annexure. 2 TEST REPORT Date 2.11.2007 Report No 42 1.1 Party's Name: 1.2 Party's Letter Ref: 1.3 Sample Details 1.4 Sample Ref. No. Asst Commissioner of Customs, Appr Gr-1, JNCH Nhava Sheva TR No 3003/15.10.2007 Gr-1 Sealed sample of M/s Endeka Ceramics India Pvt Ltd CH(E) 45 Method used: The sample was analysed using X-ray Florescence Spectrophotometer Percentage Elements Comp....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....DAS मुख्य महाप्रबंधक (अनुसंधान एवं सुरक्षा) C.O.M. (Research & Safety) wwwKOLLAM MERC FARE FARTING LTD year are 41207 free, watch at 400 028 Rugd. Omce: Plot No. 1207, Opp.Siddhi Vinayak Temple. Veer Sawarkar Marg, Prubbidevi. Mumbai. 10002 INDU Form No:PL/01. Rev No:00 Tugul of I Rev Date: 01.02.2007 Document 3 3 इंडियन रेअर अर्थ लिमिटेड अनुसंधान केन्द्र . INDIAN RARE EARTHS LTD. RESEARCH CENTRE (भारत सरकार का उपक्रम - परमाणु ऊर्जा (A Govt. of India Undertaking - Dept. of Atomte Enen कोत [88000 JR, Beach Rond. ..... (44004, 7. a Kollam -691 001 Kerala State. IND 91 474 2749296/91 4742763645 Fax 91 474 27....