#Customs and Excise

CESTAT Ahmedabad holds that bagasse, generated as agricultural waste during sugar production, cannot be classified as an exempted good under Rule 6 of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004, rendering circulars demanding credit reversal unlawful. This clarifies that waste by-products not intentionally manufactured for sale do not trigger input credit reversal obligations, benefiting sugar mills and agro-industries nationwide.

CESTAT Chennai ruled that tax authorities cannot aggregate clearances from legally independent units to deny SSI exemption unless each unit receives a separate show cause notice. This upholds natural justice and prevents arbitrary aggregation, protecting small manufacturers from collective liability without individual due process.

CESTAT Chennai rules that sorting, crushing, and washing waste PET bottles into flakes does not qualify as 'manufacture' under the Central Excise Act, exempting such recycling units from excise duty. The ruling clarifies the legal threshold for 'manufacture' in waste processing, impacting PET recycling businesses and excise compliance.