9911796707
TMI Blog2000 (10) TMI 87X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... erms of the exemption contained in serial no. 122 of the Table of Notification 11/97 was claimed. This entry exempts from payment of duty on goods classifiable under tariff heading 84, 85 or any other chapter of the Customs tariff, for - (a) substitution of ozone depleting substances, and (b) setting up of a new capacity with non ODS technology. The refrigerators hereto manufactured by the appellant employed freons as a cooler. This belongs to the category of CFC, which are now recognized to deplete the ozone layer of the atmosphere. This entry has evidently been inserted in pursuance of the Montreal Protocol on environmental protection, one of the objects of which it was to reduce, and ultimately prohibit, use of CFCs. 2.The appellant had ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 3.The goods were accordingly permitted clearance without payment of duty in terms of the exemption. The six months specified in that letter dated 1-7-1997 would have ended on 31-12-1997. On 29-12-1997, the appellant, it is stated, sent a fax letter to the Assistant Commissioner of Customs. In that fax, it explained to the Assistant Commissioner the difficulties it had in getting the clearance from the Steering Committee, pointing out that the bank guarantees were valid up to July, 1998. The appellant requested the Assistant Commissioner "to bear with us" till the certificate was received. On 2-1-1998, the Customs department wrote to the guaranteeing bank asking for encashment of both the bank guarantees. The bank complied with this requir ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... it of the project import under heading 98.01 that the importer claimed, and also for the reason that certificates from the Ministry of Environment and Forests were required for the purposes of Notification 11/97. In our view, as long as the assessment was provisional, for any one reason out of two, it continued to be so. The Larger Bench of the Tribunal in its decision in CCE v. PMT Machine Tools - 1991 (55) E.L.T. 592 has held that where the assessment is provisional for any purpose, it is provisional for all purposes. The significance of this is clear that an assessment made provisional for any purpose cannot be considered final on account of points other than the one for which it has been kept provisional. Either the assessment is provis ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... essments were made on the bills of entry thus denying the benefit of the notification. A provisional assessment has to be finalised in terms of sub-section (2) of Section 18 of the Act which refers to the duty leviable on such goods being assessed finally in accordance with the provisions of the Act. The provisional assessment therefore will have to be finalised by determining the classification, valuation or other purposes for which the goods were provisionally assessed and determining on the bill of entry filed, the amount of duty so payable. Neither of these has been done. In a situation where none of these procedures have been followed, it is not possible for us to say that the assessment was finalised. It is only after such assessment ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... erable delay in issuing the certificate by the Ministry of Environment and Forests is clear from the letter dated 6-8-1999 from Vinod Vaish, Special Secretary addressed to the Chairman of the Central Board of Excise and Customs. That letter contains an admission by this official that there was delay in understanding and implementing the new legislation by the Steering Committee. We do not wish to comment upon the Ministry of Environment and Forests in initially delaying certificate and then subsequently recommending grant of refund. It would have been desirable for this Ministry, in stead of making such recommendation to so conduct its affairs that the certificate in question was issued promptly. However, this does not mean that the importe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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