law: Companies Act, 1956
  Sec 3    -   Definitions of
  
  " company ", " existing company ", " private company
  
  " and " public company ". 
  (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise
  
  requires, the expressions " company ", " existing company
  
  ", " private company " and " public company ", shall,
  
  subject to the provisions of sub-section (2), have the meanings specified below
  
  :
  (i) " company " means a company
  
  formed and registered under this Act or an existing company as defined in
  
  clause (ii) ;
  (ii) " existing company " means a
  
  company formed and registered under any of the previous companies laws
  
  specified below :
  (a) any Act or Acts relating to companies in
  
  force before the Indian Companies Act, 1866 (10 of 1866), and repealed by that
  
  Act ;
  (b) the Indian Companies Act, 1866 (10 of
  
  1866) ;
  (c) the Indian Companies Act, 1882 (6 of 1882)
  
  ;
  (d) the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913)
  
  ;
  (e) the Registration of Transferred Companies
  
  Ordinance, 1942 (54 of 1942) ; and
  (f) any law corresponding to any of the Acts
  
  or the Ordinance aforesaid and in force :
  (1) in the merged territories or in a Part B
  
  States (other than the State of Jammu and Kashmir), or any part thereof, before
  
  the extension thereto of the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913) ; or
  (2) in the State of Jammu and Kashmir, or any
  
  part thereof, before the commencement of the Jammu and Kashmir (Extension of
  
  Laws) Act, 1956 (62 of 1956), in so far as banking, insurance and financial
  
  corporations are concerned, and before the commencement of the Central Laws
  
  (Extension to Jammu and Kashmir) Act, 1968 (25 of 1968) in so far as other
  
  corporations are concerned ; and
  (g) the Portuguese Commercial Code, in so far
  
  as it relates to " sociedades anonimas " ;
  (iii) " private company " means a
  
  company which has a minimum paid-up capital of one lakh rupees or such higher
  
  paid-up capital as may be prescribed, and by its articles,
  (a) restricts the right to transfer its
  
  shares, if any ;
  (b) limits the number of its members to fifty
  
  not including
  (i) persons who are in the employment of the
  
  company ; and
  (ii) persons who, having been formerly in the
  
  employment of the company, were members of the company while in that employment
  
  and have continued to be members after the employment ceased ;
  (c) prohibits any invitation to the public to
  
  subscribe for any shares in, or debentures of, the company ;
  (d) prohibits any invitation or acceptance of
  
  deposits from persons other than its members, directors or their relatives:
  Provided  that where two or
  
  more persons hold one or more shares in a company jointly, they shall, for the
  
  purposes of this definition, be treated as a single member;
  (iv) " public company " means a
  
  company which –
  (a)  is not a private company;
  (b) has a minimum paid-up capital of five lakh
  
  rupees or such higher paid-up capital, as may be prescribed ;
  (c) is a private company which is a subsidiary
  
  of a company which is not a    private company;
  (2) Unless the context otherwise requires, the
  
  following companies shall not be included within the scope of any of the
  
  expressions defined in clauses (i) to (iv) of sub-section (1), and such
  
  companies shall be deemed, for the purposes of this Act, to have been formed
  
  and registered outside India :
  (a) a company the registered office whereof is
  
  in Burma, Aden or Pakistan and which immediately before the separation of that
  
  country from India was a company as defined in clause (i) of sub-section (1) ;
  (b) Omitted by the J & K ( Extension of
  
  Laws )Act,1956.
  (3) Every private company, existing on the
  
  commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2000, with a paid-up capital of
  
  less than one lakh rupees, shall, within a period of two years from such
  
  commencement, enhance its paid-up capital to one lakh rupees.
  (4) Every public company, existing on the
  
  commencement of the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2000, with a paid-up capital of
  
  less than five lakh rupees, shall, within a period of two years from such
  
  commencement, enhance its paid-up capital to five lakh rupees.
  (5) Where a private company or a public
  
  company fails to enhance its paid-up capital in the manner specified in
  
  sub-section (3) or sub-section (4), such company shall be deemed to be a
  
  defunct company within the meaning of section 560 and its name shall be struck
  
  off from the register by the Registrar.
  (6) A company registered under section 25
  
  before or after the commencement of Companies (Amendment) Act, 2000 shall not
  
  be required to have minimum paid-up capital specified in this section.