Characteristics of Civil society:
1) It consists of non-state institutions.2) It consists of a plethora of organizations and institutions outside family, state, and market.
3) It is an organized society.
4) It is voluntary.
5) It is autonomous body.
6) It is a nonprofit entity.
7) It enables citizen’s interaction with the state, thus, facilitating citizen participation in the governance process.
Regulation:
Civil society in India is largely equated with voluntary organizations or the more colloquially used term, NGO, or Non-Governmental Organization.The Central Statistical Institute of India announced in about 2009 that there were 3.3 million NGOs registered in India or literally one NGO for every 400 Indian citizens.
It recent time it was estimated that NGO in India has nearly 3.4
million, working in a variety of fields ranging from disaster relief to advocacy for marginalised and disadvantaged communities.
NPOs or CSOs usually take one of three legal forms: public charitable trust, society, or non-profit / Section 8 company.
1.Trust
Three or more trustees may form and govern a public charitable trust. Such a trust may be established for a number of purposes, including poverty relief, education, medical relief, the provision of facilities for recreation, or any other objective of general public utility.The laws governing charitable trusts and societies vary from state to state. Most states have their own “Public Trusts Act.
In states that do not have a Trusts Act, the principles of the Indian Trusts Act of 1882 apply, and such trusts are registered under the Indian Registration Act 1908.
2. Society:
A society is a nonprofit membership organization, formed by seven or more members for a literary, scientific, or charitable purpose.A society is usually managed by a governing council or a managing committee. The definition of “society” and the scope of its permissible purposes may vary somewhat based on the relevant state law, though most state laws are based on the Central Societies Registration Act of 1860.
3. Section 8 of the Companies Act:
A Section 8 company is a nonprofit company established for any one or more purpose/s: “the promotion of commerce, art, science, sports, education, research, social welfare, religion, charity, protection of environment or any such other object.”Section 8 companies may be incorporated either as private or public. A private company is formed by two or more members who by default serve on the governing board as directors.
Unlike trusts and societies, which are generally subject to state law, nonprofit companies are governed by the Central Indian Companies Act.