PwBD reservation for benchmark disability for temporary certificates in jobs

Dear Client,
The Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act was enacted in the year 2016 and came into force on 19th April 2017. Individuals having 40% or more disability can apply for a disability certificate, provided their disability falls under the categories specified under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. The issue of a Unique Disability Identity(UDID) card to a PWD is an initiative by the Government of India to create a National Database for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs). The UDID card and Disability Certificate have two types of validity: Permanent UDID card and Temporary UDID Card. Permanent UDID: The competent medical authority issues a Permanent UDID Card, considering there is no progress or regression in the disability of a PwD. Temporary UDID: The competent medical authority issues a Temporary UDID Card considering there is progress or a regression in the disability of a PwD. A disability certificate remains valid for lifelong in case of a permanent disability. However, for temporary disabilities, the certificate/ID card remains valid for five years. It has to be renewed once in five years, subject to the medical examination of the disabled person. Given the proposition of relevant law and SOPs, when a notification of DOPT specifies that only candidates having permanent disability card(UDID) are entitle for reservation, the persons holding temporary disability card are out of ambit of the reservation.

Dear Sir,

Under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (RPwD Act):

Section 2(r) defines “person with benchmark disability” as someone with not less than 40% of a specified disability as certified by the competent authority.

It does not specify that the certificate must be permanent for eligibility.

However, in practice and policy implementation, DoPT guidelines are what most recruiting bodies—including IBPS, UPSC, SSC—follow.