Excise Duty: Central Excise duty is an indirect tax levied on goods manufactured in India. Excisable goods have been defined as those which have been specified in the Central Excise Tariff Act as being subjected to the duty of excise. There are three types of Central Excise duties collected in India namely

Basic Excise Duty: This is the duty charged under section 3 of the Central Excises and Salt Act,1944 on all excisable goods other than salt which are produced or manufactured in India at the rates set forth in the schedule to the Central Excise tariff Act,1985. 

Additional Duty of Excise: Section 3 of the Additional duties of Excise (goods of special importance) Act, 1957 authorizes the levy and collection in respect of the goods described in the Schedule  

Special Excise Duty: As per the Section 37 of the Finance Act, 1978 Special excise Duty was attracted on all excisable goods on which there is a levy of Basic excise Duty under the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944. Since then each year the relevant provisions of the Finance Act specifies that the Special Excise Duty shall be or shall not be levied and collected during the relevant financial year. 

Customs Duty: Custom or import duties are levied by the Central Government of India on the goods imported into India. The rate at which customs duty is leviable on the goods depends on the classification of the goods determined under the Customs Tariff.  

Service Tax: There has been a steady increase in the rate of service tax. From a mere 5 per cent, service tax is now levied on specified taxable services at the rate of 14 per cent.  

—The author is Founding and Managing Partner of Anand Law Practice. He can be reached at Kamalkanand@anandlawpractice.com