Indian NGOs

Indian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) can be set up under various Indian laws.

The different legal entities under which a civil society organisations can register themselves are:

Societies Registration Act, 1860 is a central act for registering not-for-profit organisations. Almost all the states in India have adopted (with modifications, if any) the central Act for creating state level authorities for registering various types of not-for-profit entities. According to the act any seven persons who subscribe to the Memorandum of Association (MOA) can register a society. The memorandum should include names of the society, its objectives, its names, addresses and occupations of the members subscribing to it as well as the first governing body to be constituted on registration.

Public trusts can be created for public charitable purposes. There is no All India Level Act for setting up public charitable trusts. Some of the states in India have enacted the Public Charitable Trust Act, while most states in India do not have a trust act. An NGO can be created only under a public trust act. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have independent state level public trust acts. States like West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar do not have any act to register a public trust.

A trust can be registered in one state, but the same has the scope to operate in any number of states. In the state of Maharashtra and Gujarat, all organisations that are registered as 'Society' are by default also registered as Public Trust.

A private trust, created under and governed by the Indian Trusts Act of 1882, aims at managing assigned trust properties for private or religious purpose. A private trust does not enjoy the privileges and tax benefits that are available for public trusts or NGOs.

Conferring of corporate personality to associations that promote cultural and charitable objectives, but exempting them from the operation of some cumbersome requirements (which are essentially for regulation of business bodies but are difficult for compliance by non-profit companies), are the noteworthy features that are provided under the companies act, 2013.

According to section 25(1) (Companies Act, 1956): "Where it is proved to the satisfaction. of the Central Government that an association is about to be formed as a limited company for promoting commerce, art, science, religion, charity or any other useful objectives, intends to apply its profits, if any, or other income in promoting its objectives, and to prohibit the payment of any dividend to its members, the Central Government may, by license, l direct that the association may be registered as a company with limited liability, without addition to its name of the word "Limited" or the words "Private Limited".

...
Wikipedia