Chapter VIII PUBLIC TRUSTS ADMINISTRATION FUND

1[(1) There shall be established a fund to be called the Public Trusts Administration Fund. The Fund shall vest in the Charity Commissioner.]

1. (2) The following sums shall be credited to the said Fund, namely :- 2[(a) fees leviable under section 18 ;]
   • (b) Contributions made under section 58 ;
   • (c) the amount from the funds or the portion thereof credited under section 61 ;
   • (d) any sum received from a private person ;
   • (e) any sum allotted by the State Government or any local authority; and
   • (f) any other sum which may be directed to be credited by or under "the provisions of 3[this Act or the Inter- State Corporation Act, 1957 (Bom. XXVIII of 1957)] 4[or the Bombay Statutory Corporations (Regional Reorganisation) Act, 1960 (Bom. XXI of 1960)].

158. Contribution by public trusts to Public Trusts Administration Fund.- (1) Subject to the provisions of this section, every public trust shall pay to the Public Trusts Administration Fund annually such contribution at a rate or rates not exceeding 2[five per cent, of the gross annual income, or of the gross annual collection or receipt, as the case may be, as may be notified, from time to time, by the State Government, by order published in the Official Gazette. The contribution shall be paid on such date and in such manner as may be prescribed.] 3[The contribution payable] under this section shall-

1. (i) in the case of a dharmada, be fixed at a rate or rates on the gross annual collection or receipts of the dharmada ;
2. (ii) in the case of other public trusts, be fixed at a rate or rates on the gross annual income of such public trust. 4[Explanation 1.- For the purposes of this sub-section 'gross, annual collection or receipt' or 'gross annual income' does not include any donations received by any dharmada or public trust from another dharmada or public trust registered under this Act.] Explanation 5[2].- (a) For the purpose of this sub-section 'gross annual income' means gross income from all sources in a year (including all donations and offerings), but does not include any payment made or anything given with a specific direction that it shall form part of the corpus of the public trust, nor include any deductions which the State Government may allow by rules : Provided that, the interest or income accruing from such payment made or thing given in the years following that in which they were given or made shall be taken into account in calculating the gross annual income.

1. (b) Where a public trust conducts a business or trade as one of its activities for the purpose of assessing the contribution as respects that activity, the net annual profits of such business or trade shall be treated as the gross annual income of the business or trade. 6[(2) The State Government may exempt from payment of contribution public trusts which are exclusively for the purpose of the advancement and 7[propagation of education, or exclusively for the purpose of water conservation, or exclusively for the purpose of development of forest, horticulture or agriculture, or exclusively for the purpose of welfare of the Schedule Castes, Schedule Tribes, Denotified Tribes, Nomadic Tribes or Women,] or exclusively for the purpose of medical relief or veterinary treatment of animals, or exclusively for the purpose of relief of distress caused by scarcity, drought, flood, fire or other natural calamity, and may also exempt from the payment of contribution any donations forming part of the gross annual income and which are actually spent on the relief of distress caused by scarcity, drought, flood, fire or other natural calamity. If any question is raised whether a trust falls in any exempted class of trusts or whether any donations are donations which qualify for exemption from contribution under this subsection, the decision of the State Government on the question, obtained in the manner prescribed, shall be final.]

1. (3) The State Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, reduce, whether prospectively or retrospectively, the rate or rates at which the contribution fixed under sub-section (1) is payable by any class of public trusts and may in like manner remit the whole of such contribution or any part thereof, regard being had to the nature of the objects of the class of public trusts, or the smallness of the income thereof. 8[(4) In determining the rate or rates of contribution to be notified under sub-section (1), the State Government shall take into consideration the balance available in the Public Trusts Administration Fund and the estimated income and expenditure (including any capital expenditure) of the Charity Organisation and ensure that the levy has reasonable corelation with the services rendered or to be rendered or any expenditure incurred or to be incurred for carrying out the purposes of this Act. For this purpose, the rates of contribution may be increased or decreased, or reductions or remissions may be granted, from time to time, prospectively or retrospectively, by the State Government, by an order or orders made as provided in this section and published in the Official Gazette.] 9[(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing provisions in this section, on and after the commencement of the Bombay Public Trusts (Amendment) Act, 1983 (Mah. XXIX of 1983), every trustee of a public trust liable to pay contribution shall, while filing a copy of the balance sheet and income and expenditure account under sub-section (1A) of section 34, pay in advance the whole amount of the annual contribution of the public trust computed at the rate fixed under sub-section (1) of this section, according to specified percentage of the gross annual income, or of the gross annual collection or receipt, as the case may be, as shown in the balance sheet and income and expenditure account, in such manner, and subject to such adjustments to be made after the contribution payable is assessed, as may be prescribed.]

1. (1) If the trustee of a public trust (other than the Charity Commissioner) 1[or the person charging or collecting dharmada] fails to pay the contribution under section 58 he shall be liable to penalties provided in section 66.
2. (2) The Charity Commissioner may also make an order directing the bank in which or any person with whom any money belonging to the public trust are deposited to pay the contribution from moneys as may be standing to the credit of the public trust or may be in the hands of such person or may from time to time be recovered from or on behalf of the public trust by way of deposit by such bank or person and such bank or person shall be bound to obey such order. Every payment made pursuant to such order shall be a sufficient discharge to such bank or person from all liability to the public trust in respect of any sum or sums so paid by it or him out of the moneys belonging to the public trust so deposited with the bank or person.
3. (3) Any bank or person who has been ordered under sub-section (2) to make the payment may, appeal to the State Government, and the State Government may after making such inquiry as it thinks fit, confirm, modify or cancel such order.

1. (1) The Public Trusts Administration Fund shall, subject to the provisions of this Act and subject to the general or special order of the State Government, be applicable to the payment of charges for expenses incidental to the regulation of public trusts and generally for carrying into effect the provisions of this Act.
2. (2) The custody and investment of the moneys to be credited to the Public Trusts Administration Fund and the disbursement and payment therefrom shall be regulated and made in the prescribed manner.

On the application of this Act to any public trust or class of public trusts which may have been registered under any of the Acts specified in 1[Schedule A] 2[or Schedule AA], 3[the State Government may direct that the Charity Commissioner shall recover any arrears due under any such Act and] that the amount of any fund or for the administration of public trusts constituted under the said Act for the region or sub-region in which such public trust or class of public trust was registered or any portion thereof 4[including the arrears recovered by the Charity Commissioner] shall be credited to the Public Trusts Administration Fund constituted under this Chapter.