Central Excise Offices have no System to monitor Show Cause Notices - CAG
CAG has noted that Central Excise Commissionerates have no uniform practice of maintaining a centralised record to monitor issue of SCNs and their follow up. Audit found that there was no centralised record of all the cases which required issue of SCN. Once issued, SCNs were monitored through different records such as 335J Register , Draft SCN Register, SCN movement register, Show Cause Notice issue register etc. Consequently, there was a monitoring system once SCNs were issued but nothing to ensure that SCNs had been issued in every case of detection of non-levy, short-levy etc. wherever required. Since there was no centralised record, CAG had to restrict the examination to ascertaining whether SCNs were being issued in all cases, as required by the instructions of the Board, in respect of the observations raised by audit parties (CERA) of the CAG during 2008-09. Audit found instances where SCNs were not issued and reasons for not doing so were not found on record.
Call Book Cases not recalled : CAG found that several cases have been dumped in the call book and several not recalled.
What is a Call Book ? Please see -14.12.2009
335 J Register : This is an archaic register prescribed under the Tobacco Excise Manual, which was buried in 1979. Departmental officers still maintain this register and senior learned officers inspecting lower formations religiously mention that 335J register is maintained. Nobody has ever asked anyone as to why they are maintaining a register, which was killed 33 years ago!