Section 58 of the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950: the annual contribution by public trusts to the Public Trusts Administration Fund and the exemptions

Section 58 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.

This article explains the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950 as it applies in the State of Maharashtra, formerly the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950. Section 58 requires every public trust to pay an annual contribution to the Public Trusts Administration Fund at a rate that the State Government notifies, up to a ceiling printed in the section; it defines the income on which the contribution is worked out and lists the trusts the State Government may exempt.

This article explains section 58 as amended up to Maharashtra Act No. XXXVI of 2018 (in force 21 May 2018), per the official text of the Law and Judiciary Department modified up to 19 December 2018. Maharashtra amended the Act again in 2019, 2020, 2024 and 2025; the amending texts consulted do not change this section, but the current text should be checked on the Charity Commissioner's website before relying on it. A 2020 Ordinance concerning this Chapter was reported in 2020; its text is not held and whether it became law is not established, so nothing is said here about it.

Every public trust pays the Fund annually "at a rate or rates not exceeding five per cent" of its gross annual income (for dharmada, of its gross annual collection or receipt), as may be notified from time to time by the State Government in the Official Gazette. The rate itself is not printed in the section. Donations given for the corpus are left out of the income. The State Government may exempt listed classes of trust, may reduce or remit the rate, and must keep the levy in reasonable correlation with the services rendered. The whole annual contribution is paid in advance when the balance sheet is filed.

What changed and when

Section 58 was substituted by Mah. 29 of 1962, s. 2. The "five per cent" ceiling wording was substituted by Mah. 35 of 1977, s. 5(1)(a), and the words "The contribution payable" by Mah. 35 of 1977, s. 5(1)(b). Explanation 1 was inserted, and the older Explanation re-numbered 2, by Mah. 20 of 1971, s. 42(1). Sub-section (2) was substituted by Mah. 20 of 1971, s. 42(2); the education words were later substituted for "propogation of secular education" by Mah. 39 of 1997, s. 2. Sub-section (4) was added by Mah. 35 of 1977, s. 5(2), and sub-section (5) by Mah. 29 of 1983, s. 4. The Act that substituted the section also made it operate retrospectively, as its section 4 (quoted in the footnote) says. The fund into which the contribution is paid is in Section 57.

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Sub-section (1): the ceiling and the rate

"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 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."

The section prints a ceiling, not a rate. The actual rate for a year is whatever the State Government has notified within the ceiling; this article states no rate, and a trust should check the current notification, and may seek books of accounts compliance support to work the base out. For a dharmada, the contribution is fixed "at a rate or rates on the gross annual collection or receipts of the dharmada"; for other public trusts, "on the gross annual income of such public trust". For dharmada itself, see Section 54.

The Explanations: what counts as income

Explanation 1. "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." So a donation passing from one registered trust to another is left out of the receiving trust's base.

Explanation 2(a). "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". The proviso: "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."

Explanation 2(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."

A trust with corpus donations should therefore separate them in its books from ordinary donations and offerings, because the first are left out and the second are counted. Keeping the corpus gifts and their later income apart is a task for books of accounts compliance support.

Sub-section (2): exemptions

"The State Government may exempt from payment of contribution public trusts which are exclusively for the purpose of" the following:

1. the advancement and propogation of education;
2. water conservation;
3. development of forest, horticulture or agriculture;
4. welfare of the Schedule Castes, Schedule Tribes, Denotified Tribes, Nomadic Tribes or Women;
5. medical relief or veterinary treatment of animals; or
6. relief of distress caused by scarcity, drought, flood, fire or other natural calamity.

It may also exempt "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". The word "exclusively" is the test: a trust with mixed purposes is outside the class. If a question is raised whether a trust falls in an exempted class or whether donations qualify, "the decision of the State Government on the question, obtained in the manner prescribed, shall be final."

The exemption is a power ("may exempt"). It does not exempt a trust by itself.

Sub-sections (3) and (4): reduction, remission and reasonable correlation

Sub-section (3) allows the State Government, by order in the Official Gazette, to reduce the rate for a class of public trusts, prospectively or retrospectively, and to remit the whole contribution or any part, "regard being had to the nature of the objects of the class of public trusts, or the smallness of the income thereof." Sub-section (4) requires the State Government, in setting the rate, to 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 to "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."

Sub-section (5): payment in advance

On and after the commencement of the Bombay Public Trusts (Amendment) Act, 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." The filing of the balance sheet is dealt with in Section 34.

Illustration. A public trust in Nagpur running a cultural hall receives donations and hall rents in a year. It also receives one donation with a written direction that it forms part of its corpus. In working out gross annual income it counts the other donations and the rents, leaves out the corpus donation, but counts the interest the corpus donation earns in later years. When it files its balance sheet it pays the contribution in advance at the rate currently notified.

Need help with the contribution and trust accounts?

The contribution depends on correctly separating corpus gifts, donations and business profits. Our team can review a trust's accounts and the computation through books of accounts compliance services.

Key takeaways

• The section prints a ceiling of five per cent, not a rate; the State Government notifies the rate.
• The base is gross annual income, or gross annual collection or receipt for dharmada.
• Corpus gifts are left out, but later income on them counts; business profits are taken as net.
• The State Government may exempt listed classes of trust, reduce rates and remit contributions.
• The whole annual contribution is paid in advance while filing the balance sheet.

Read next

• Section 57: the Public Trusts Administration Fund
• Sections 59 to 61: recovery of contribution and application of the Fund
• Section 54: dharmada collected in business and trade

Disclaimer: Based on the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950 as modified up to 19 December 2018 in the official text of the Law and Judiciary Department, Government of Maharashtra, as consulted on 3 October 2026. Maharashtra amended the Act again in 2019, 2020, 2024 and 2025; the current text, the Maharashtra Public Trusts Rules and the Charity Commissioner's circulars should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.