No. 36035/8/2003-Estt (Res)
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES & PENSIONS
DEPARTMENT OF PERSONNEL & TRAINING
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New Delhi,
Dated the 26th April, 2006

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Sub: Reservation for the Persons with Disabilities
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The undersigned is directed to say that the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 which came into existence on 1.1.1996 provides for reservation for persons with disability in the posts identified for three categories of disabilities namely (i) blindness or low vision, (ii) hearing impairment and (iii) locomotor disability or cerebral palsy. Instructions have also been issued by this Department for providing reservation for such persons. In spite of the Act and the instructions of this Department, vacancies were not earmarked reserved or were not filled by reservation in some establishments.

2. The matter has been considered carefully and it has been decided that reservation for persons with disabilities should be implemented in right earnest and there should be no deviation from the scheme of reservation, particularly after the Act came into effect. In order achieve this objective, all the establishments should prepare the reservation roster registers as provided in this Department’s O.M. No. 36035/3/2004-Estt (Res) dated 29.12.2005 starting from the year 1996 and reservation for persons with disabilities be earmarked as per instructions contained in that O.M. if some or all the vacancies so earmarked had not been filled by reservation and were filled by able bodied persons either for the reason that points of reservation and were filled by able bodied persons either for the reason that points of reservation had not been earmarked properly at the appropriate time or persons with disabilities did not become available, such unutilized reservation may be treated as having been carried forward to the first recruitment year occuring after issue of this O.M. and be filled as such. If it is not possible to fill up such reserved vacancies during the said recruitment year, reservation would be carried forward for further two years, whereafter it may be treated as lapsed.

3. It has been observed that some recruiting agencies declare in their advertisements that blind/partially blind candidates need not apply and that separate examinations would be conducted for visually handicapped candidates. Attention is invited to para 7 of this Department’s O.M. No. 36035/3/2004-Estt (Res) dated 29.12.2005 which provides that persons with disabilities selected on their own merit will not be adjusted against the reserved share of vacancies. It means that persons with disabilities who are selected on their own merit have to be adjusted against the unreserved vacancies and reservation has to be given in addition. if visually handicapped candidates or any other category of handicapped candidates are debarred from applying on the ground that a separate examination would be conducted for them, chances of handicapped candidates being selected on their own merit would be eliminated. Thus debarring of any category of handicapped candidates in the above manner is against the provisions contained in the aforsaid O.M. It is, therefore, requested that persons with disabilities should not be debarred from applying for the posts identified suitable for them and should be provided opportunity to compete for the unreserved vacancies as well by holding a common examination.

4. Contents of this O.M. may be brought to the notice of all concerned.

Sd/-
(K.G.Verma)
Dy. Secretary to the Govt. of India