Page 48 - ELT_1st September 2020_Vol 373_Part 5

A150 EXCISE LAW TIMES [ Vol. 373

tain levies are outside GST, and are not refunded for exports, such as VAT on
fuel used in transportation, mandi tax, duty on electricity used during manufac-
turing, among others. These would be covered for reimbursement under the
RoDTEP Scheme.
[Source : The Financial Express, New Delhi, dated 11-8-2020]

Customs starts clearing its shelves, ensures safe storage till
disposal — Beirut explosion impact
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Custom (C.B.I. & C.) has launched
a drive to clear unclaimed/uncleared/seized/confiscated goods. This drive will
continue till August 15.
“Special care would be taken to confirm that till their disposal all such
goods as well as other goods that may become ripe for disposal later, are kept
safely and securely (including safe from fire) and do not present any danger to
life or property,” C.B.I. & C. said in a circular. Further, it must be positively en-
sured that no such goods, ripe for disposal, are held up in any Customs station
beyond the prescribed timelines.
The drive gains importance in the wake of the Beirut ammonium nitrate
blast on August 4 which killed over 200 persons, injured over 5,000 and left 3
lakh people homeless. The accident led to attention on nearly 700 tonnes of the
chemical lying in a container freight station near Chennai after seizure in 2015
under the Customs Act, 1962. It had already been e-auctioned and after political
hue and cry, is now being taken to Hyderabad.
The C.B.I. & C.’s circular said, the Commissioner of Customs will under-
take safety audit in co-ordination with the Pollution Control Board/Fire Safety
Department or any other competent authority and cause the custodian to under-
take all the sufficient measures to ensure safe storage and handling of hazardous
and explosive materials in a Customs area. The Board has made it clear that the
procedure for disposal is in a manual published last year and the timeline was
drawn in a circular of 2018.
According to the circular, several instances have come to notice of the
Board regarding the pending disposal of such goods including some that are
hazardous and explosive in nature. The expeditious disposal of such goods that
are ripe for disposal is required not only to safeguard revenue at the earliest but
also to prevent loss of revenue due to any untoward incident such as theft or
pilferage.
[Source : Business Line, Chennai, dated 13-8-2020]
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EXCISE LAW TIMES  1st September 2020  48