Issue with Disability Quota 

Issue with disability Quota 

Part of: GS Prelims and Mains II – Social/Welfare issue; Vulnerable section 

Context: 

• Delhi High Court issued notice to UPSC on a plea challenging this year’s preliminary examination notice for direct recruitment to civil services. 
• The petition filed by Sambhavana (a registered society of the disabled for the disabled) claimed that the UPSC’s notice reserves only 24 vacancies for persons with disabilities out of a total 796 expected approximate vacancies. (it neglects the minimum reservation to be provided to disabled persons) 
• The number of vacancies were below the 4 % mandatory reservation under section 34 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016. 

4% mandatory reservation under Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016: 

• Section 34(1) of RPwD mandates a minimum 4% reservation for the benchmark disabled of the total number of vacancies in the cadre strength in each group of posts meant to be filled with such disabled. 
• It mandates equal distribution of one (20% each) among the disabled classes of the blind, deaf, locomotor plus the combined class of autism, etc. with those having multiple disabilities.