Govt Limits Excise Sops To Specified Brand Names

The finance ministry has restricted excise exemptions only to specified brand names, unlike in the past where it was made available irrespective of whether such goods were cleared under the brand name or any trade name of an organised manufacturer.

In an official press release issued yesterday, the ministry stated that the exemptions in the case of unbranded goods would continue. The present change has been initiated to plug a loophole through which several big companies, including some multinationals, used to evade excise duty.

The modus operandi adopted was to get the small-scale units, registered either with the Khadi and Village Industries Commission or womens cooperatives which were eligible for excise exemption, to produce the branded good.

 

The official release stated that in the case of branded goods, the exemptions would fall under four categories where a brand name or trade name belonging to: the manufacturer producing the specified excisable goods; the Khadi and Village Industries Commission; the State Khadi and Village Industries Board; the National Small Industries Corporation or the State Industries Development Corporations.

The categories of goods include synthetic detergents, footwear, electrical and electronic items, laundry and carbolic soaps and specified food preparations.