TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2021 (12) TMI 723
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....he Applicant is engaged in manufacture of spices, masalas, pickles and food products in the brand name of "SWASTIK". The applicant, among other things, also manufactures and sells "Rava Idli Mix" under the brand name of SWASTIK, classifying the same under tariff heading 2106 9099, on discharging GST at 18%. However the applicant felt that the said product merits classification under HSN 1106 and hence filed the instant application. 3. The applicant, in view of the above, sought advance ruling in respect of the following question: a. What is the HSN Code of the product "Rava Idli Mix" ? 4. Admissibility of the application: The question is on the issue of classification of the product "Rava Idli Mix", which is covered under "classification of any goods or services or both" and hence is admissible under Section 97(2)(a) of the CGST Act 2017. 5. BRIEF FACTS OF THE CASE: The applicant furnishes the following facts relevant to the issue : 5.1 The Applicant stated that they are engaged in manufacture of masalas, pickles & other food products and they also manufacture & market the product "Rava Idli Mix", which is a mix of flour of cereals / grains along with pulses added with spices....
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.... (heading 0901,or 2101); ii. Prepared flours, groats, meals or starches of heading 1901; iii. Corn flakes or other products of heading 1904; iv. Vegetables, prepared or preserved of heading 2001,2004 or 2005; v. Pharmaceutical products (chapter 30); or vi. Starches having the character of perfumery, cosmetic or toilet preparations (chapter 33). c) Products from the milling of the cereals listed in the table below fall in this chapter if they have, by weight on the dry product: i. A starch content (determined by the modified Ewers polarimetric method) exceeding that indicated in column (2); and ii. An ash content (after deduction of any added materials) not exceeding that indicated in column (3). Otherwise, they fall in heading 2302. However, germ of cereals, whole, rolled, flaked or ground, is always classified in heading 1104. d) Products falling in this chapter under the above provisions shall be classified in heading 1101 or 1102 if the percentage passing through a woven metal wire cloth sieve with the aperture indicated in column (4) or (5) is not less, by weight, that that shown against the cereal concerned. Otherwise, they fall in heading 1103 or 1104. Cere....
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....headings irrespective of the nature of their ingredients. 6.3 The applicant with regard to the interpretation of classification of the product "Rava Idli Mix" stated as under: a) The applicant understands that one has to follow tariff act along with chapter notes, section notes and rules of interpretation for classifying the product. b) GST Act 2017 has not notified Tariff Act. However Notification No.1/2017-Central Tax, under sl.no.iii of explanation specifies that "Tariff item", "sub-heading", "heading" and "chapter" shall mean respectively a tariff item, sub-heading, heading and chapter as specified in the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act 1975 (51 of 1975).-Further the rules for the interpretation of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, including the Section and Chapter Notes and the General Explanatory Notes of the First Schedule shall, so far as may be, apply to be interpretation of this notification. c) The applicant, reproducing the rules 1 to 6 under Customs Tariff Act 1975, for interpretation of First Schedule to the said Act, stated that chapter 11 covers the products of the milling industry, malt, starches, inulin and wheat gluten as per the....
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.... means not a processed food, neither cooked food, nor semi-processed food, nor semi cooked food, nor preserved food or not a ready to eat food. Instant mixed flour is a flour of grains and pulses mixed with spices, condiments. iv. The description stated in heading 1106 suits for the instant mixed flour and hence there is no need to go under residual entry. h) The product being manufactured by the applicant consists of flour of grains and pulses equivalent to 90% of total quantity in the packet. There is no further processing of flours except mixing of flours in different percentages. i) The classification of the product depends on the primary ingredient/major raw materials of the product, as no new product emerges after mixing of flour of grains. j) As per rule 3(a) of the general rules for the interpretation of customs tariff, "when goods are prima facie classifiable under two or more headings, classification shall be the heading which provides the most specific description shall be preferred to headings providing a more general description" k) As per rule 3(b) of the general rules for the interpretation of customs tariff, "mixtures, composite goods consisting of differe....
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....nt Rate of passage through a sieve with an aperture of 315 micrometres (Microns) 500 Micrometres (Microns) (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Wheat & Rye 60.08% 3.32 95.5% -- r) As per chapter note 3 of chapter 11, Rava Idli Mix could fall under chapter 2302 and the applicable rate of tax is 5% as per notification 01/ 2017-Central Tax. 7. Ms. Neeharika Inti, Deputy Commissioner of Central Tax, Division-6, Bengaluru South Commissionerate, Bengaluru, vide their letter dated 17.09.2021, offered comments on the question raised by the applicant inter alia stating that the product in question is a mix of various ingredients & all the ingredients are equally important and hence does not merit classification based on the major constituent of the product. Therefore this office is of the opinion that "Rava Idli Mix", manufactured and marketed by the applicant, is correctly classifiable under tariff heading 2016, which attracts 18% GST. PERSONAL HEARING-PROCEEDINGS HELD ON 07.10.2021. 8. Shri. Lokesh Chartered Accountant & Authorised Representative of the applicant appeared for personal hearing proceedings and reiterated the facts narrated in their application. FINDINGS & DISCUSSION 9.....
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....e impugned product. The applicant submitted that the impugned product is prepared/manufactured by mixing certain flours of cereals/grains & pulses in certain proportion added with certain spices and condiments. However, the applicant has neither indicated the specific constituents (grains and pulses) nor the proportion in which they were mixed. Applicant submitted that the subject product is an instant ready mix, which needs to be mixed with sour curd and other ingredient as required for preparing rava idlis. 14. Chapter 11 covers products of the milling industry; malt; starches; inulin; wheat gluten. While Note 1 to the Chapter details the products which are specifically not covered under the Chapter, Note 2 aides the classification of products under various Tariff headings of the Chapter as under: 2. (A) Products from the milling of the cereals listed in the table below fall in this Chapter if they have, by weight on the dry product : (a) a starch content (determined by the modified Ewers polarimetric method) exceeding that indicated in column (2); and (b) an ash content (after deduction of any added minerals) not exceeding that indicated in column (3). (3). Otherwise, t....
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....nd tubers 110630 - Of the products of Chapter 8 : 11063010 --- Of tamarind 11063020 --- Of singoda 11063030 --- Mango flour 11063090 --- Other From the above it is clear that Tariff heading 1106 covers flour, meal and powder of individual raw materials of either leguminous vegetables(of heading 0713) or roots or tubers(of heading 0714) or of products of Chapter 8. Like other tariff headings in the Chapter, tariff heading 1106 also covers products of individual raw material and not mixtures. "Rava Idli mix" is admittedly a mixture of flour of pulses, cereals and other ingredients resulting in a different product. Thus the impugned product does not get covered under this tariff heading i.e. 1106. 16. The applicant contended that their product "Rava Idli Mix" merits classification under tariff heading 1106, on the basis of circular No. 80/54/2018-GST dated 31.12.2018 wherein it is clarified at para 3 that Chhatua or Sattu is a mixture of flour of ground pulses and cereals. HSN code 1106 includes the flour, meal and powder made from peas, beans or lentils (dried leguminous vegetables falling under 0713). Such flour improved by the addition of very small amounts of addi....