A senior functionary of the said the amendment will help authorities to monitor and regulate the activities of both the State and district level societies in a much better manner.
The Societies Registration Act, 1860 which was amended vide the Societies Registration (Odisha Amendment) Act, 2021 was notified vide Gazette number 743 dated 13.05.2021 and the appointed date for coming into force of the amended Act was notified on May 21.
For speedy disposal of grievances/ cases on intra-societal conflict, the present amendment empowers any member of the Society to file a petition in the Court of Senior Civil Judge having jurisdiction over the place at which the office of the society is situated, he said.
As per the present amendment, any society registered under the Act shall not distribute among its governing body members or general members in cash or kind, any profit or surplus that may have accrued from its activities. For non-submission of annual audit report with balance sheet to the Registrar of Societies, the registration certificate of the societies is liable for cancellation, the amendment stipulates.
A registered society is viewed as a separate legal entity, built for development of fine arts, science, or literature or for providing useful knowledge for charitable purposes, the statute describes.