Reservation in Promotion to Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD)- grant of notional promotion w.e.f. 30.06.2016 – Clarification with illustrations: Department of Posts Order dated 08.07.2025
File No. X-20/17/2024-SPN-II
Government of India
Ministry of Communications
Department of Posts
(Personnel Division)
Dak Bhawan, New Sansad Marg
New Delhi – 110001
Dated: 8th July 2025
To,
The Chief Postmaster General
Chhattisgarh Circle,
Raipur.
Subject: Reservation in Promotion to Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD)- grant of notional promotion w.e.f. 30.06.2016.
Sir,
I am directed to refer to Chhattisgarh Circle’s letter No. STA 1/21/B-PwBD dated 28.03.2025 on the above-mentioned subject.
2. Chhattisgarh Circle apart from interchange/exchange of vacancy of PwBD, in the case of PwBD candidates is not available in a particular vacancy year, had sought the following clarification for the modality to be adopted for providing of reservation for PwBD notionally w.e.f. 30.06.2016:
(i) Whether DEST is to be conducted for the PwBD candidates who are eligible for promotion on the basis of departmental examination held earlier, if they have not appeared in DEST.
(ii) If these candidates qualify DEST, supernumerary post is to be created for the vacancy year 2023 or those can be adjusted against current vacancy available.
(iii) Circle has further sought for the clarification whether the vacancy of PwBD of year 2022 of PM/MG which could not be filled up in the year 2022, 2023, 2024 due to non -availability of PwBD candidates, are to be carried forwarded for the year 2025 or these vacancies are to filled up as direct recruitment through Competitive examination from GDS.
3. It is submitted that Department of Personnel and Training vide O.M. No. 36012/1/2020-Estt (Res-II) dated 17.05.2022 have issued guidelines for providing of reservation in promotion to PwBD employee notionally w.e.f. 30.06.2016. Later on, vide OM No. 36012/1/2020-Estt (Res-II) dated 28.12.2023, DOPT had issued the modality for extending the reservation.
4. Accordingly, vide letter of even number dated 18.06.2024, guidelines were issued to all Postal Circles with request to extend the benefit of reservation in promotion to PwBD employee notionally w.e.f. 30.06.2016 and to send a proposal for creation of supernumerary posts if vacancy is not available on the date of actual assumption of charge to accommodate such PwBD officials.
5. DOPT OM dated 17.05.2022 provides the following criteria for filling up of the reserved vacancy of PwBD in case suitable and adequate number of PwBD candidates are not available in a particular vacancy years:
Para 13.1: While filling up the reserved vacancies by promotion by selection, those PwBD candidates who are within the normal zone of consideration, shall be considered for promotion. However, if adequate number of PwBD candidates of respective category are not available within the normal zone, the zone of consideration may be extended to five times the number of vacancies and the PwBD candidates falling within the extended zone may be considered for promotion. In the even of non-availability of candidates even in the extended zone, the vacancy shall not be filled and be carried forward to the subsequent year. In the subsequent year, if a PwBD of the required category is not available, the reservation can be exchanged with the other category, so that the post can be filled by a person with other category of disability, if possible. If a PwBD candidate of other category is within the zone of consideration, and within the number of vacancy available, he cannot be denied promotion on the grounds of disability. If it is not possible to fill up the post by reservation even in the 2nd year, the post may be filled by a person other than PwBD, and the reservation shall be carried forward for two subsequent recruitment years, whereafter it shall lapse.
Para-13.3: – In order to ensure that cases of lapse of reservation are kept to the minimum, any recruitment of the PwBD candidates shall first be counted against the vacant posts brought forward from previous years, if any, in the chronological order. If candidates are not available for all the vacancies, the older carried-forward posts shall be filled first, and the current vacancies shall be carried forward, if not filled up, provided that in every recruitment, the number of vacancies reserved for PwBD, including the carried forward vacancies, shall be announced beforehand, for the information of all aspirants.
6 Accordingly issue of exchange of PwBD vacancies has been examined in spirit of DOPT guidelines and the following is hereby clarified with the objective to keep minimum of lapses of vacancies of PwBD:
Illustration: – 1
(a) First, vacancy which earmarked for a specific category of PwBD is to be filled up from the same category of PwBD candidates to which vacancy belongs.
(b) In case, vacancy could not be filled up, the same vacancy shall be brought forward to subsequent year and would be filled up from the same category of PwBD candidate if available in subsequent year. If the same category of PwBD candidate is not available subsequent year, the vacancy shall be filled up with other category of PwBD candidate who is higher in the merit list.
(c) If there is one VH category PwBD vacancy earmarked for the recruitment year 2020 and no eligible candidate from the VH category is available for the vacancy in 2020, the vacancy will be carried forward to the subsequent year, i.e., 2021 for filling up with VH Category PwBD Candidate, if available.
(d) In 2021, if there is one HH category PwBD vacancy earmarked for the recruitment year, then recruitment shall be made for two vacancies: one VH (2020) and one HH (2021).
(e) Now, if there is only one eligible candidate is available for the recruitment year 2021 and that is of HH Category.
(f) In this case, vacancy carried forward from 2020 shall be filled first by exchanging with the other categories to keep the lapse of reservation to the minimum. One HH category vacancy which was earmarked for vacancy year 2021, will be carried forward to the subsequent year.
Illustration: – 2
(a) If there is one VH category PwBD vacancy earmarked for the recruitment year 2020 and no eligible candidate from the VH category is available for the vacancy in 2020, the vacancy will be carried forward to the subsequent year, i.e., 2021.
(b) In 2021, if there are one HH category PwBD vacancy and one OH category PwBD vacancy are earmarked for the recruitment year, then recruitment shall be made for three vacancies: one VH (2020), one HH (2021) and one OH (2021).
(c) Now, if there are four eligible candidates are available for the recruitment year 2021 and those are of one-HH, one-OH and two-Ors categories.
(d) In this case, one-HH and one-OH candidates shall be selected against the vacancies earmarked for vacancy year 2021. Further, out of two-Ors. eligible candidates, one candidate (who is higher in the merit list) will be selected against the one-VH category vacancy (by exchanging with the other categories) which was brought forward from the year 2020.
7. Para 13.1 provides of DoPT OM dated 17.05.2022 provides if it is not possible to fill up the post by reservation even in the 2nd year, the post may be filled up by a person other than a PwBD, and the reservation shall be carried forward for two subsequent recruitment years, thereafter it shall lapse.
8. As far as other issues is concerned, point wise clarification mentioned hereunder may be followed:
8.1 Issue 1: Whether DEST is to be conducted for the PwBD candidates who are eligible for promotion on the basis of departmental examination held earlier,, if they have not appeared in DEST.
Comments: Data Entry Skill Test is to be conducted to the such PwBD candidates who had earlier not appeared in DEST and now being considered for providing of reservation notionally. DEST for such PwBD candidates are to be conducted who eligible for promotion and not exempted for DEST as per existing guidelines.
8.2 Issue 2: If these candidates qualify DEST, supernumerary post is to be created for the vacancy year 2023 or those can be adjusted against current vacancy available.
Comments: Directorate vide letter No. X-20/17/2024-SPN-II dated 18.06.2024, has issued the guidelines for providing of reservation in promotion to PwBD employees notionally 30.06.2016 and also requested to all Circle to send a proposal for creation of supernumerary posts if vacancy is not available on the date of actual assumption of charge to accommodate such PwBD officials.
As such, need of creation of supernumerary posts to accommodate such PwBD officials is required when vacancy is not available on the date of actual assumption of charge by the official.
8.3 Issue 3: Circle has further sought for the clarification whether the vacancy of PwBD of year 2022 of PM/MG which could not be filled up in the year 2022, 2023, 2024 due to non -availability of PwBD candidates, are to be carried forwarded for the year 2025 or these vacancies are to filled up as direct recruitment through Competitive examination from GDS.
Comments: As per RR of Postman/Mail Guard notified vide G.S.R. No. 638(E) dated 30.082023, post of Postman/MailGuard is to be filled up with the following methods:
(i) 50 per cent by promotion of Multi-Tasking Staff, failing which, the unfilled vacancies shall be added to the number of vacancies to be filled as per (ii) below;
(ii) 50 per cent by direct recruitment on the basis of Competitive Examination limited to Gramin Dak Sevaks failing which by direct recruitment from open market as per the scheme circulated by the Department of Posts from time to time.
8.4 In view of this, the following may be followed for filling up of the vacancy of PwBD:
- PwBD vacancy of identified category which could not be filled up firstin the method (i), may be filled up with the method (ii).
- After doing so, if identified category of PwBD candidates are not available, such vacancy is to be carried forwarded to subsequent year for filling up with method (i) and if in subsequent year, PwBD candidates of required category is not available, vacancy shall be filled up with exchanged method.
- After doing so, still some of vacancies could not be filled up in subsequent year with method (i), the vacancies may be filled up by a person other than PwBD with the method para (i) and the reservation shall be carried forward for two subsequent recruitment years for filling up with method (i), thereafter it shall lapse.
9. The Circle is hereby requested to take necessary action as per the above clarification for filling up of the vacancies earmarked for PwBD.
Yours faithfully,
(Vangara Prasad)
Assistant Director General (SPN)
COMMENTS