9911796707
TMI Blog2003 (4) TMI 305X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y Determination Rules, 1997. 2. The appellants are engaged in the manufacture of iron and steel products classifiable under Chapter 72 of the Central Excise Tariff Act. In September, 1997, they filed declaration under Rule 96ZP(4) of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 wherein parameters of rolling mill were declared for determination of annual capacity in terms of Hot Re-rolling Steel Mills Annual Capacity Determination Rules, 1997 (hereinafter in short referred to as Rules, 1997 ). They also declared the type of furnace as Batch Type. Before filing this declaration in the year 1996-97, they had two rolling mills wherein the total production of both the rolling mills was 12,401 MT. But, on introduction of compound levy scheme, the appellants ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ct; and secondly, whether furnace installed in the mill of the appellants is Batch Type or Pusher Type. An additional issue involved in A. No. E/1169/2000-NB (S), is whether Rule 5 of the Rules of 1997 could be invoked for determining the annual capacity of the mill of the appellants. 5. So far as the first issue is concerned, the same stands already covered against the appellants by the decision of the Larger Bench in the case of Mohinder Steels Ltd. v. CCE, Chandigarh, 2000 (145) E.L.T. 290 (T-LB) = 2002 (52) RLT 669, wherein it has been ruled that no notice under Section 11A of the Act is required to be issued for recovery of duty under the Compound Levy Scheme. The argument of the Counsel that the said judgment of the Larger Bench is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 3 assessees, installed in their rolling mills including the present appellants, in one go and submitted the common report/single report that the furnaces installed were Pusher Types on the ground that the furnaces had machines which charged the material and the material also moved inside the furnace. But when cross-examined, he did not dispute in the case of the appellants that the base of the furnace was stationary and there was no movement of the material inside the furnace during the heating of charged material. He also did not dispute that charging machine, which he claimed as Pusher Mechanism, was placed outside the furnace by the appellants and not inside for moving of the material during the heating. Therefore, the report of the Supe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ine as to whether the Pusher Type furnace could work with the slow/low speed rolling mill or not. Even when he was cross-examined in this regard, he did not offer any satisfactory explanation and simply stated that he was appointed to determine the only type of furnace and not the type of rolling mill. For determining the type of furnace, he was required to see the type of rolling mill also which the appellants were having. When their mill was slow/low speed, it could only work with the batch type furnace and not pusher type. 8. The appellants even submitted Chartered Engineer certificate along with a declaration wherein Chartered Engineer confirmed that there was no movement of the material inside the furnace of the appellants during the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... which they installed one furnace, one electric motor and one fly wheel. The mechanical set up was thus changed by them under which only one rolling mill could be operated, at a time. The Board also vide Circular No. 345/40/97-TRU, dated 26-2-1999 clarified that if a unit has one heating furnace with two rolling mills, then the capacity of the higher of the two mills should be taken as the assessee s annual capacity for the unit. Therefore, in the face of this Board s Circular, the annual capacity of the higher of the two mills, could be taken into account only and not of the both mills independently, for determining the annual capacity of the appellants. In this context, reference may also be made to the ratio of the law laid down by the T ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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