TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2011 (7) TMI 869
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....Sreeleathers 32 de novo dated 28-8-2009 630/09 H.S. Chatterjee Do 631/09 Satyabrata Dey Do 21/10 Sreeleathers Pvt. Ltd. 34 de novo dated 9-10-2009 22/10 H.S. Chatterjee Do 23/10 Satyabrata Dey Do 472/10 Sreeleathers 3 dated 29-1-2010 473/10 Sreeleathers Pvt. Ltd. 4 dated 29-1-2010 488/10 Sreeleathers (REVENUE APPEAL) 10 dated 12-3-2010 489/10 Sreeleathers Pvt. Ltd. (REVENUE APPEAL) 11 dated 12-3-2010 2. The relevant fact that arises for consideration in all these appeals is whether the assessee on affixing of bar code on the goods i.e footwear received from their suppliers, would amount to manufacture as per the provisions of Section 2(f)(iii) of the Central Excise Act, 1944. In the orders, appealed against....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....p;It is his submission that, on reading the provisions of Section 2(f)(iii), it is very clear that the said section talks about the declaration to be made by the assessee. It is his submission that the activity of affixing bar code would amount to labelling and re-labelling and the declaration of the price on the boxes would amount to declaration made by the assessee in this case as the suppliers are not covered under either Central Excise Act or under SWMA or rules made thereunder. It is his submission that the adjudicating authority has decided only the last two impugned orders taking a contrary view. It is his submission that the decisions of Rafique Mallick, on which reliance is placed by adjudicating authority, will be irrelevant in th....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....he appellant assessee, they do not do any further activity at all, i.e., packing or repacking of the goods or labelling or re-labelling of the footwear. The only activity undertaken by the appellant in their office is affixing a bar code sticker before the goods are delivered to various show rooms, shops or malls. 6. On this factual matrix, we find that the provisions of Section 2(f)(iii) of the Central Excise Act, 1944, reads as under : "2(f)(iii) which, in relation to the goods specified in the Third Schedule, involves packing or repacking of such goods in a unit container or labelling or re-labelling of containers including the declaration or alteration of retail sale price on it or adoption of any other treatment on the goods to ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....e. Affixation of bar code on the goods does not give any additional information to customers, as the said bar codes are only readable by machine. It is also on record that a bar code which is affixed by the appellant in this case is only representing the data which is already present on the card board box supplied by the supplier. It is also to be noted that in the absence of any bar code, the footwear in this case are marketable to the customer and as contended by the ld. Counsel, there are shops in the rural area which do not have bar code scanner and the said footwear are sold without scanning of the said bar code, needs to be accepted, as this is a factually correct proposition. 8. We find that the judgment of coordinate Bench in ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....al Excise Act, 1944 to call for levy of duty. (b) the reliance of the ld. Sr. Advocate on the case of C.C.E. v. Manisha International [2003 (152) E.L.T. 345] & Avon Beauty Products (India) P. Ltd. [2002 (83) ECC 522] & Panchsheel Soap Factory [2002 (145) E.L.T. 527], Lal International Pvt. Ltd. [2003 (154) E.L.T. 520] will not be of assistance in this case, this case is not only of such goods, wherein MRP simplicitor with bar code labels, logos were being placed. The position of packing in unit containers, being conducted herein from loose merchandise, was not the fact considered in any of these decisions. (c) We would therefore uphold the order as regards duty as such shoes which were packe....