SHONKH TECHNOLOGIES INTERNATIONAL LTD Vs. REVENUE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) 1. This is an application under Section 23C of the Central Excise Act, 1944 (for short 'the Act') seeking an advance ruling on the question "whether the process of embossing unique vehicle registration numbers on already manufactured number plates amounts to manufacture."

(2.) The applicant is a resident company registered under the Companies Act, 1956 and proposes to set up a joint venture in India in collaboration with a non-resident, viz. M/s. H.R. International, an independent company registered in Belgium. The applicant would be purchasing high security vehicle registration number plates from manufacturers. It would then manufacture aluminium sheets in coil form which would be flattened and laminated with retro reflective sheets. Thereafter, chrome hologram shall be stamped with the hologram hot stamping machine. Thus, various sizes of licence plates would be manufactured; each plate will be having a unique serial number braided on each plate with a laser braiding machine which is security feature. The embossed plates will then be hot stamped with a foil pre-printed with the word "IND" and laminated plate would be fitted to the vehicles. The plates will be stamped "IND" to comply with the mandatory requirement of the Government directive. The special feature of these plates is that once such a plate is fitted to a car, it cannot be removed. The applicant submit that the plates would be classifiable under Chapter heading 83.10 of the Central Excise Tariff.

(3.) MR. V. Sridharan, Advocate, appearing for the applicant, takes notice on the said question as to why the application should not be rejected and submits that he waives issuance of a written notice and would argue the point regarding the maintainability of the application. Heard also the learned Departmental Representative.