TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2008 (9) TMI 105
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.... in respect of goods manufactured by a factory belonging to a State Government if such goods are intended for use by another Department of the State Government. A Division Bench of the Tribunal in CCE v. Electricity Poles Manufacturing, 2000 (121) E.L.T. 96 (Tribunal), has held that although not 'State' within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India, the Electricity Board does not cease to be a State Government Undertaking or a Corporation owned by the State Government and is, therefore, eligible for full exemption under the said Notification. At the time of hearing of the waiver-cum-stay application in Appeal No. E/563/08, reliance was placed on behalf of the appellant on the said decision. The Bench observed that State Elec....
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....exed and falling under the Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985 (5 of 1986) from the whole of the duty of excise leviable thereon which is specified in the said Schedule: Provided that such goods are manufactured by a factory belonging to a State Government and such goods are intended for use by any Department of that Government. ……… &nbs....
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....ia is not res integra. Way back in 1967, in Electricity Board v. Mohan Lal, AIR 1967 Supreme Court 1857, the State Electricity Board was held to be an authority and, therefore, a 'State' within the meaning of Article 12. However, this does not necessarily mean that every authority which is a 'State' within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India is also a part or Department of the Government. Corporations and statutory authorities though 'State' are different from Government even if they are controlled and financed wholly or partly by the Government. Reference may be made to the cases of S.L. Agarwal v. Hindustan Steel Ltd., 1970 (1) SCC 177, R.D. Shetty v. InternationalAirport Authority of india, 1979 (3) SCC 489....
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....vant to mention here that "Electricity Pole Manufacturing" is a unit of Uttar Pradesh State Electricity Board. 6. Learned consultant appearing for the appellants fairly conceded that the Chhattisgarh State Electricity Board is not a Department of the Government but took the stand that the goods i.e. PCC Poles are intended for use by the Departments of the Government, such as, Public Works Department, Water Resource Department, Public Heath Engineering Department, Education Department, Women & Children Welfare Department etc. Besides, it was stated, Gram Panchayats, Nagar Panchayats, Municipalities and Municipal Corporations which are "directly State" deriving their authority from the Constitution of India, also use the goods manufac....
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....ricity to them on payment of charges. The PCC Poles are thus manufactured by the Board for its own use. The Authorised Representative of the appellant fairly stated that the PCC poles continue to belong to the concerned Electricity Board for which the consumers pay some amount as security refundable at the stage of termination/cessation of the electric supply. The Government like any other consumer, therefore, cannot be regarded as user of the poles and it would thus follow that the subject goods are not manufactured for use by any Department of the Government. 8. As a matter of fact, on the admission of the appellant's representative that the Electricity Board is not a Department of the State Government, the benefit of exempti....