# NATIONAL FEDERATION OF BLIND v. UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION AND OTHERS - **Citation:** [1993] 2 S.C.R. 556 - **Court:** Supreme Court of India - **Decided:** 1993-03-23 - **Bench:** Kuldip Singh, N.M. Kasliwal - **Source:** https://unisonlegal.in/judgment/supreme-court-of-india/national-federation-of-blind-v-union-public-service-commission-and-others-11700 - **Pages:** 11 ## Headnote •· Visually Handicapped-Right to compete for civil services-Writ of r:: mandamus u/Alt 32 of the Constitution-:Tustijication for writing civil service examination in Brailli;--Script or with the help of a scribe-Whether visual c handicap hinders equal efficiency. ,. Entitlement to claim promotion to higher posts-And right to claim a A' ) palticu/ar post in. the hierarchy of promotional posts in respect of which the ), Government has found that the visually handicapped persons shall not be l suitable. D The visually handicapped constitute a significant section or our society. As it is necessary to encourage their participation in every walk or life. The Central Ministry of Welfare has been undertaking various measures to utilise their potentialities. The Governments have launched E schemes to educate, train and provide them with useful employment. The -y Central Government has provided 3% reservation in Group C and D posts for physically handicapped including blind and partially blind, while demand is growing for reservations in Group A and B posts. The Standing Committee of the Ministry of Welfare undertook idenF tilication of jobs in these categories and submitted its report on October 31, 1986. Para 8 thereof related to the blind. It took note of reading and writing deficiency and suggested the provision of allowance. And found that the specified 416 posts in Group A and B are suitable for blind and partially blind. So, the Ministry of Personnel issued office memorandum G dated November 25, 1986 a accepting the report and took policy decision regarding identification of jobs for the physically handicapped persons in Group A and B posts filled to be by direct recruitment in Central Governr- ment Services and Public Sector Undertakings. This court examined the memorandum and found that the Govern· H ment had taken cognizance of the identified jobs; that the Government had 556 ~ NATIONAL FEDERATION OF BLIND v. U.P.S.C. 557 _,)- decided about the recruitment of handicapped lessons to these posts; that A the departments would supplement the list further; that the Ministries/Departments would inform the UPSC about preferential treatment to handicapped candidates; that the UPSC 'bad agreed in principle to give preference; and that the Department of Personnel and Training would be -f issuing general instructions for the purpose. B However, the decisions were not implemented for seven years. So the petitioner approached this Court seeking a writ in the nature of mandamns directing the Union of India and the UPSC to permit the blind candidates to compete for the I.A.S. and Allied Services and to provide them facility of writing the civil services examination either in Braille c Script or with the help of a scribe. ~ On hearing the counsel for the petitioner, himself visually handicapped, this Court, HELD: The performance ofthecounsel for the petitioner before us has D amply proved the point that the visually handicapped penous can perform the jobs entrusted to them with equal efficiency. However the question of giving preference to the handicapped in the matter of recruitment to the identified posts is a matter for the Government of India to decide. The y Government of India is commended to decide the question of providing E preference/reservation to the handicapped in Group A and B Posts. (564 C-D·E] I This Court further held that there are number of post which are required to be filled through the civil services examinations and other competitive examinations conducted by the Commission, so the observaF lions of the UPSC that the posts identified as suitable to be held by the \ physically handicapped persons, particularly those identified for the blind were not required to be filled on the basis of competitive examination conducted by the Commission, appeared to be incorrect. (565 DJ Group A and 8 posts in the category of Administrative Officers are G necessarily to be filled as a result of civil services examination held by the ~ ## Text A NATIONAL FEDERATION OF BLIND v. UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION AND OTHERS MARCH 23, 1993 .a -k- [KULDIP SINGH AND N.M. KASLIWAL, JJ.) •· Visually Handicapped-Right to compete for civil services-Writ of r:: mandamus u/Alt 32 of the Constitution-:Tustijication for writing civil service examination in Brailli;--Script or with the help of a scribe-Whether visual c handicap hinders equal efficiency. ,. Entitlement to claim promotion to higher posts-And right to claim a A' ) palticu/ar post in. the hierarchy of promotional posts in respect of which the ), Government has found that the visually handicapped persons shall not be l suitable. D The visually handicapped constitute a significant section or our society. As it is necessary to encourage their participation in every walk or life. The Central Ministry of Welfare has been undertaking various measures to utilise their potentialities. The Governments have launched E schemes to educate, train and provide them with useful employment. The -y Central Government has provided 3% reservation in Group C and D posts for physically handicapped including blind and partially blind, while demand is growing for reservations in Group A and B posts. The Standing Committee of the Ministry of Welfare undertook idenF tilication of jobs in these categories and submitted its report on October 31, 1986. Para 8 thereof related to the blind. It took note of reading and writing deficiency and suggested the provision of allowance. And found that the specified 416 posts in Group A and B are suitable for blind and partially blind. So, the Ministry of Personnel issued office memorandum G dated November 25, 1986 a accepting the report and took policy decision regarding identification of jobs for the physically handicapped persons in Group A and B posts filled to be by direct recruitment in Central Governr- ment Services and Public Sector Undertakings. This court examined the memorandum and found that the Govern· H ment had taken cognizance of the identified jobs; that the Government had 556 ~ NATIONAL FEDERATION OF BLIND v. U.P.S.C. 557 _,)- decided about the recruitment of handicapped lessons to these posts; that A the departments would supplement the list further; that the Ministries/Departments would inform the UPSC about preferential treatment to handicapped candidates; that the UPSC 'bad agreed in principle to give preference; and that the Department of Personnel and Training would be -f issuing general instructions for the purpose. B However, the decisions were not implemented for seven years. So the petitioner approached this Court seeking a writ in the nature of mandamns directing the Union of India and the UPSC to permit the blind candidates to compete for the I.A.S. and Allied Services and to provide them facility of writing the civil services examination either in Braille c Script or with the help of a scribe. ~ On hearing the counsel for the petitioner, himself visually handicapped, this Court, HELD: The performance ofthecounsel for the petitioner before us has D amply proved the point that the visually handicapped penous can perform the jobs entrusted to them with equal efficiency. However the question of giving preference to the handicapped in the matter of recruitment to the identified posts is a matter for the Government of India to decide. The y Government of India is commended to decide the question of providing E preference/reservation to the handicapped in Group A and B Posts. (564 C-D·E] I This Court further held that there are number of post which are required to be filled through the civil services examinations and other competitive examinations conducted by the Commission, so the observaF lions of the UPSC that the posts identified as suitable to be held by the \ physically handicapped persons, particularly those identified for the blind were not required to be filled on the basis of competitive examination conducted by the Commission, appeared to be incorrect. (565 DJ Group A and 8 posts in the category of Administrative Officers are G necessarily to be filled as a result of civil services examination held by the ~ UPSC. If some of the identified posts in the Indian Administrative Service ·and other Allied Services can be filled from amongst the visually hand· icapped persons, there was no reason why they should not be permitted to sit and write the civil services examination. (565 E] H ' I 558 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1993] 2 S.O.R. A ORIGINAL JURISDICTION : Writ Petition (C) No. 655 of 1991. .~. (Under Article 32 of the Constitution of India). Santosh Kumar Rungta and R.P. Gupta for the Petitioner. B V.C. Mahajan, Ms. Niranjana Singh and Ms. A. Subhashini for the ~ Respondents. The Judgment of he Court was delivered by KULDIP SINGH, J. National Federation of Blind - a representative C body of visually handicapped persons in India - has filed this petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India seeking a writ in the nature of mandamus directing the Union of India and the Union Public Service ~ Commission to permit the blind candidates to compete for the Indian Administrative Service and the Allied Services and further to provide them D the facility of writing and civil services examination either in Braille-script or with the help of a Scribe. Braille is a system of writing for the blind in which the characters consist of raised dots to be read by the fingers. Further relief sought in the petition is that Group A and B posts in Government and public sector undertakings which have already been identified for the visually handicapped persons be offered to them on E preferential basis. 'f The visually handicapped constitute a significant section of our society and as such it is necessary to enrourage their participation in every walk of life. The Ministry of Welfare, Government of India has been F . undertaking various measures to utilise the potentialities of the visually handicapped persons. The Central as well as the State Governments have launched several schemes to educate, train and provide useful employment 'r to the handicapped. The Central Government has provided reservations to the extent of 3% vacancies in Group C and D posts for the physically G handicapped including blind and partially blind. There bas been a growing demand from the visually handicapped persons to provide reservations for them in Group A and B posts under ''r-' the Central Government. The Ministry of Welfare, Government of India bas a standing Committee or identification of jobs in various MiniH snies/Departments and public sector undertakings for the physically hand- NATIONALFEDERATIONOFBUNDv. U.P.S.C.(KULDIPSINGH,J.) 559 ,,..... icapped. By an order dated December 30, 1985 the Government of India A directed the Standing Committee to undertake the identifieation of jobs for the handicapped in Group A and B Services under the Government and public sector undertakings. ...;.. The Committee submitted its report which was published on October B 31, 1986. Copy of the report has been placed on the record of this petition. In the introduction to the report given by Mr. M.C. Narsimhan, Joint Secretary to Government of India and Chairman, Stating committee on identification of jobs for handicapped, it has been stated as under:- 'A Sub Committee, which was set up to assist the Standing c Committee visited a large number of Public Sector Undertakings and observed people actually working in a variety of jobs and the working conditions in which these jobs are performed. The Sub Committee had detailed discussions with the Chiefs and Senior Officers of the D Public Sector Undertakings as also with officers of the Central Government Departments. A list of the public sector undertakings and the list of the officers of the Undertakings with whom the Sub Committee had discusy· sions is annexed to the report. The Committee after E detailed discussions and on-the-spot study has prepared a comprehensive list of 416 categories in Group A and B posts in Government Offices and Public Sector Undertakings, with their jobs descriptions, the physical requirement of each group of job and matched them with various categories of disabilities .. ' F ' The Committee devoted special attention to the visually handicapped. Para 8 of the report whith relates to the blind is as under:- "However, in the case of the blind the position is somewhat G different. Seeing, reading, writing and movement are essential ingredients of most Government jobs. Therefore, a similar approach in respect of blind persons may be difficult. It would not be possible to generalise that blind person can do most jobs as we have found for those with locomotor and hearing disabilities. The Committee found H A B c D E F G H 560 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1993) 2 S.C.R. that in higher posts is Government the help of a personal assistant or a stenographer is generally available. But this facility is. not available even in higher posts in public sector undertakings. Wherever this facility is available a blind person may not find it difficult, in certain groups of posts, to handle the job. It is also possible, in relation to other posts where stenographic assistance is not available that some other facilities can be provided to a blind employee. To compensate 'reading deficiency', readers' allowance can be provided to blind employ~es to enable them to engage a reader. Similarly, to compensate for "writing deficiency", the blind employee should be required to know typing. Adequate knowledge of typing should be prescribed as an essential qualification for blind employees for public employment. Where mobility may also be one of the main ingredients of a job it is difficult to compensate blind employees for this "deficiency". The Committee would also emphasise that the blind employee should be fully responsible for the duties assigned to them, despite the provision of reader's allowance and typing skill. The Committee would also suggest that the maximum reader's allowance should be limited to Rs.200 p.m. to blind employees recruited to Group A and B post.' The Committee has identified about 416 categories of Group A and B posts which are suitable for the handicapped. The Committee bas further specified that the visually handicapped (blind and partially blind) are suitable for appointment to the following categories of Group A and B post:- No. in the List Category of Group Annexed to the Post Report 178 to 187 Hindi officers A&B 191 to 192 Job Analyst A&B 193 to 199 · Labour Welfare Officers A&B 200 to 209 Law Officers A&B r ~ _,.l. ~ ~- y .,_, NATIONAL FEDERATION OF BLIND v. U.P .S.C. (KULDIP SINGH, J .) 561 '237 to 242 Personal Assistants B 243 to 256 Personnel Officers A&B 279 to 291 Public Relations Officers A&B 295 to 317 Research Officers A&B 354 to 363 Training Officers A&B 364 to 376 Administrative Officer (Non Secretarial) A 377 to 384 Administrative Officers (Secretarial-Sr.) A 385 to 401 Administrative Officers (Secretarial-Junior) A&B 409 Asstt. Admin. Officer We have only quoted the list of categories from the report to iilustrate the point that the Committee appointed by the Government has in its report identified certain categories of posts to which the blind and the partially-blind can be appointed. Government of India Through Ministry of Personnel issued office memorandum dated November 25, 1986 wherein it accepted the report of the Committeee and took a policy decision that in respect of the posts identified by the Committee the handicapped persons shall be given preference in the matter of recruitment to those posts. The office memorandum is re-produced hereunder: "No.F.36034/4/86-Estt.(SCT) Government of India Ministry of Personnel, Public Gri6vances & Pensions Department of Personnel & Training New Delhi, the 25th November, 1986 OFFICE MEMORANDUM Subject:- Identification of jobs for the physically handicapped persons in Groups 'A' and 'B' posts filled by direct recruitment in the Central Government services and Public Sector Undertakings. A B c D E F G H 562 A B c D E F G H SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1993] 2S.C.R. The undersigned is directed to say that with a view to effecting optimum utilisation of potentialities of physically handicapped which constitutes a significant section of the population in the country, the Ministry of Welfare constituted a Stand~ Committee for identification of jobs for the physically handicapped in the Central Government services and Public Sector Undertakings. The Standing Committee on identification of jobs set up a sub-Committee for on-the-spot identification of jobs for the physically handicapped persons in Group 'A' and 'B' posts after mal