JUDGMENT
Rajes Kumar, J.
1. These are three revisions filed by the applicant against the order of Tribunal dated April 10, 1992 relating to assessment years 1982-83, 1983-84 and 1984-85.
The applicant was carrying on the business of manufacture and sales of Dricks. For the assessment year 1982-83, the applicant was holding a certificate from Khadi Gramodyog Commission and on the basis of certificate, the applicant had claimed exemption on the turnover of bricks. The certificate was initially granted by the U.P. Khadi Gramodyog Board, Meerut, on August 16,1982 temporarily which was valid up to February 15, 1983. The certificate was issued for manufacturing of bricks and tiles. The permanent registration was granted on March 23, 1983 which was valid up 😮 March 22, 1984. In this way, the applicant was holding certificate from the U.P. Khadi Gramodyog Board for the years 1982-83 and 1983-84. Tribunal has observed that the applicant was not holding certificate for the year 1984-85. The applicant had claimed exemption on the turnover of bricks under the Notification No. ST-II-5025/X-6-(12)-79-U.P. Act-XV-48-order-79, dated June 30, 1979 claiming that under the aforesaid notification, cottage pottery industries is covered and since the brick-kiln falls under “Cottage pottery industries”, hence, the turnover of unit should be exempted. The assessing authority, first appellate authority and the Tribunal have rejected the claim of exemption. Tribunal held that the brick-kiln does not fall under the entry of “cottage pottery industries”.
2. I have heard Sri Amitabh Agarwal, learned Counsel for the applicant and Sri M. R. Jaiswal, learned Standing Counsel.
3. The sole question involved in the present revision is whether the brickkiln falls under the entry of “cottage pottery industries” to which the exemption is granted, vide, Notification No. ST-II-5025/X-6-(12)-79-U.P. Act-XV-48-order-79, dated June 30, 1979. Thus it is relevant to reproduce the aforesaid notification:
Notification No. ST-II-5025/x-6-(12)-79-U.P. Act XV-48-Order-79 dated June 30, 1979.
In exercise of the powers under Clause (b) of Section 4 of the U.P. Sales Tax Act, 1948 (U.P. Act No. XV of 1948), read with Section 21 of the U.P. General Clauses Act, 1904 (U.P. Act No. 1 of 1904), the Governor is pleased,-
(1) to rescind, with effect from July 1, 1979, Government Notification No. ST-2783/X-902(60)-59, dated June 1, 1963, and
(2) to exempt, with effect from the same date, the institutions in Uttar Pradesh certified by the All India Khadi and Village Industries Commission, Bombay, or by the Uttar Pradesh Khadi and Village Industries Board, Kanpur, from payment of tax under the said Act on the sale of products of village industries mentioned in the schedule to the Khadi and Village Industries Commission Act, 1956, or the Uttar Pradesh Khadi and Village Industries Board Act, 1960, as reproduced in the schedule hereunder:
Schedule
1. …
2. …
3. Cottage pottery industry;….
4. Hindi version of the notification, at serial No. 3 of the Schedule reads as “Mitti Ki Vastuye” (Potteries Ka Kutil Udyog). The learned Counsel for the applicant contended that the brick is pottery item. The pottery covers item which are made of clay and fired, therefore, bricks being a pottery item made of clay and firing, falls under “pottery”. He relied upon the Dictionary meaning of word “pottery”.
5. It is relevant to consider the Dictionary meaning of word “pottery”.
6. In Encyclopedia Americana. Vol. 22 page 471 defines the pottery as follows:
In the broad sense, consists of objects formed from plastic clay and fired for durability. It includes vessels, sculpture, brick and tile made of soft, low fired earthenware or hard, high fired stone ware or porcelain. All covered under the traditional term ‘ceramics’. In the strict sense, ‘pottery7 refers only to vessels of earthenware.
It does not include such products of modern Industrial ceramics as high fired clay structural materials or objects of glass, enamel, cement or plaster.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines the word “pottery” as follows:
1. Vessels, etc., made of fired clay. 2. a potter’s work. 3. A potter’s workshop of the potteries a district in North Staffordshire, where the English pottery industry is centred.
The Webster’s Dictionary defines as under:
(1) a factory where potter’s ware is made. (2) The manufacturing of earthenware or porcelain. (3) The clayware moulded and hardened.
The Oxford Encyclopedic Dictionary defines:
Earthenware (sometimes distinguished from porcelain); potter’s work or workshop; the potteries, district in N. Staffordshire, Chief Centre of English Pottery Industry.
The New Webster’s Dictionary defines:
Ware made by shaping moist clay and then hardening it with intense heat: the business or art of a potter, a place where earthen vessels are manufactured.
The Webster’s third New International Dictionary defines:
Clayware, earthenware as distinguished on the one hand from porcelain and stoneware and on the other from brick and tile.
7. In the case of South Gujarat Roofing Tiles Manufacturers Association v. State of Gujarat the honourable Supreme Court has observed as follows:
Pottery is an expression of a very wide import, embracing all objects made of clay and hardened by heat.
8. The aforesaid notification of 1979 has been amended by Notification No. ST-2-7037/X-7(23)/83-U.P. Act-XV-48-order-85, dated January 31, 1985. The said notification reads as follows:
In exercise of the powers under Clause (b) of Section 4 of the Uttar Pradesh Sales Tax Act, 1948 (U.P. Act No. XV of 1948), read with Section 21 of the Uttar Pradesh General Clauses Act, 1904 (U.P. Act No. 1 of 1904), and in supersession of all previous notifications issued under the aforesaid clause, the Governor is pleased to exempt, with effect from February 1, 1985 the sale or purchase of the goods mentioned in column 2 of the Schedule hereunder by the persons or the class of persons mentioned therein, from tax under the said Act of 1948, subject to the conditions, if any, specified in column 3 thereof.
Schedule
———————————————————————————
1. …
2. …
3. Institutions in U.P. certified by the
All India Khadi and Village Indus-
tries Commission or the U.P.
Khadi and Village Industries Board-
(a) on the sale of products of village
industries specified below; and
(b) on the purchase of any goods On condition that the dealer sell-
connected with the manufacture of ing such goods to the said institu-
products of village industries or tion furnishes a certificate from the
purchase of products of village said institution, duly countersigned
industries specified below: by the District Village Industries
Officer of the Uttar Pradesh Khadi
and Village Industries Board, to the
effect that the goods purchased by
it are connected with the manufacture
of products of the aforesaid village
industries or are products of such
village industries.
1. Bee-keeping
2. Cottage match industry, manu-
facture of fireworks and agarbat-
ties.
3. Cottage pottery industry exclud-
ing bricks and tiles.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. By the aforesaid notification bricks and tiles have been specifically excluded from pottery industries. In my view, cottage pottery industries covers brick-kiln under Notification No. ST-II-5025/X-6(12)-1979-U.P. Act XV/48-order-79, dated June 30, 1979. Subsequent notification excluding bricks and tiles shows that prior to January, 1985 bricks was included in cottage pottery industries, which was subsequently, excluded with effect from January 31, 1985. The definition of potteries as referred above and as considered by the honourable Supreme Court in the case of South Gujarat Roofing Tiles Manufacturers Association v. State of Gujarat also shows that it includes all objects made of clay and hardened by heat. Undoubtedly, bricks are manufactured by the process of pathai, bharai and baking (heating). In the process of pathai clay is moulded in the form of bricks and such moulded clay is put for heating, which results to bricks. Therefore, brick is an object made by clay and hardened by heat, which as per definition of pottery, observation of the honourable Supreme Court is covered in “pottery”. There is no reason to give a narrow interpretation to the word pottery industries. The wider meaning of the cottage pottery industries includes brick also. The brick-kiln is mainly a rural based industries. The intent of the notification was also to provide exemption to the rural based industries. Therefore, there is no reason that such exemption may not be extended to the brick-kiln. When Legislature intended to withdraw the exemption to the brick-kiln, the same was specifically excluded from the entry, vide, notification dated January 31, 1985. In this view of the matter, I am of the view that brick-kiln is covered under cottage pottery industries and entitled for the exemption under the Notification No. ST-II-5025/X-6(12)-1979-tJP. Act XV748-order-79, dated June 30, 1979.
10. It is made clear that applicant is entitled for the exemption only for the assessment years 1982-83 and 1983-84 up to March 22, 1984, as till then, applicant was holding certificate from the U.P. Khadi Board. After March 23, 1984 applicant was not having certificate from the U.P. Khadi Board, therefore, not entitled for the benefit of the notification.
11. In the result, revision No. 1094 of 1992 for the assessment year 1982-83, revision No. 1695 of 1992 relating to the assessment year 1983-84 are allowed and revision No. 1095 of 1992 relating to the assessment year 1984-85 is dismissed.