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Excise evasion, secret clearing of goods untrue, says Tata Chemicals

Tata Chemicals today refuted the allegations made by the Excise authorities that the company has clandestinely cleared goods in Gujarat and evaded payment of excise duty.

Reacting to the reports appeared in a section of the Gujarati press, a statement issued by the company said that the excise officers did not come across any instance whatsoever of excise evasion to the best of the company's knowledge.

According to reports, the company allegedly cleared Rs 900 million worth of soda ash from its works at Mithapur clandestinely under the guise that the material was damaged during the cyclone that wreaked havoc in June 1998. The excise officers are at the site investigating the matter.

The statement said that about 91,394 tonnes of soda ash stock lying in the open was damaged by the cyclone and of this, over 35,203 tonnes of soda ash has been utilised for internal use with the full intimation to the excise authorities.

Tata Chemicals has paid excise duty amounting to Rs 1.17 billion in 1997-98 and Rs 1.05 billion in 1998-99 and there was no record in the past that the company had evaded any excise duty and avoided any payment rightfully due to the exchequer, the statement added.

UNI

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