Worked Solution
✓ VerifiedTreatment under AS-29 (Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Contingent Assets)
(i) Provision for Replacement of Furnace Lining
Alloy Fabrication Limited should NOT create a provision for the replacement of the furnace lining under AS-29. The reason is that a provision is recognised only when a present obligation exists as a result of a past event, an outflow of resources is probable, and a reliable estimate can be made.
In this case, the future replacement cost does not constitute a present obligation — the company can avoid the expenditure by selling the furnace or ceasing operations. There is no obligating event that has already occurred compelling the company to incur this cost. Since there is no present obligation, the conditions under AS-29 for recognition of a provision are not met.
However, as per AS-10 (Property, Plant and Equipment), the furnace lining should have been recognised as a separate component of the furnace at the time of installation (1st April 2019). This component should be depreciated over its useful life of 5 years. At 31st March 2022, three years of depreciation on the lining component should have been charged to the Profit & Loss Account. The company should ensure this component accounting is correctly applied rather than making an AS-29 provision.
(ii) Consumer Court Penalty of ₹ 50 Lakhs and Legal Fees of ₹ 5 Lakhs
Regarding the penalty (₹ 50 Lakhs):
There is a 70% chance that the penalty will NOT be levied, which means there is only a 30% probability that the penalty will be imposed. Under AS-29, a provision is recognised only when an outflow of resources is probable (i.e., more than 50% likely). Since the probability of the penalty being levied is only 30% (less than 50%), it does not meet the threshold of 'probable'.
Therefore, no provision should be created for ₹ 50 Lakhs. However, since the possibility is not remote (30% is a material possibility), the amount should be disclosed as a Contingent Liability in the Notes to Accounts, along with the nature of the contingency, an estimate of its financial effect, and the uncertainties relating to the outflow.
Regarding the legal fees (₹ 5 Lakhs):
The company has a contractual obligation to pay legal fees of ₹ 5 Lakhs to the lawyer, irrespective of the outcome of the case. This is a present obligation arising from a past event (appointment of the lawyer and services being rendered).
- ₹ 3 Lakhs (60%) already paid in advance should be recognised as an expense in the Profit & Loss Account to the extent services have been rendered.
- ₹ 2 Lakhs (40%) payable after finalisation of the case meets all three criteria under AS-29: present obligation, probable outflow, and reliable estimate. Therefore, a provision of ₹ 2 Lakhs must be recognised in the financial statements as on 31st March 2022.
Conclusion: No provision for lining replacement or the ₹ 50 Lakh penalty; contingent liability disclosure required for the penalty; provision of ₹ 2 Lakhs to be made for unpaid legal fees.
Write it like this
1The skeleton
- State the standard + part number upfront — write 'Under AS-29, Part (i):' before anything else; examiners are scanning 200 papers and your structure earns the first 0.5 marks before they even read your reasoning.
- For the furnace lining, say NO provision first, THEN give the three-condition test — don't bury the answer inside the explanation; state 'No provision is required' in line 1 because there is no present obligation, and back it with the three recognition criteria as your reason.
- Drop the AS-10 component accounting point explicitly — this is the 1-mark differentiator that 80% of students miss entirely; write 'However, as per AS-10, the lining should have been recognised as a separate component and depreciated over 5 years' to grab that bonus mark.
- For the penalty, convert the % into a probability comparison immediately — say '70% chance penalty NOT levied = 30% probability of outflow, which is below the probable threshold (>50%) under AS-29'; examiners want to see you apply the threshold test numerically, not just say 'unlikely'.
- Split the legal fees into two separate treatments — ₹3L paid = expense recognised; ₹2L unpaid = provision to be created; if you club them together you lose marks even if your total is right, because the examiner is looking for two distinct accounting entries.
- End with a one-line conclusion per part — 'Conclusion: No provision; disclose as contingent liability' ties the answer and signals you finished; it also protects your marks if your middle paragraphs are thin.
2Examiner-rewarded phrases
3Common trap
The biggest killer here is treating the legal fees as a single ₹5L item — most students either provision all of it or expense all of it, when the correct answer is two different treatments for the two tranches. Also, almost everyone skips AS-10 component accounting for the furnace lining and writes only 'no provision' — that costs you at least 1 mark because the examiner expects you to tell the company what it SHOULD have done instead.