The revised provisions have come into force with immediate effect, informs a notification issued by the DPAR on December 8. (Image Generated using AI: for Representational Purposes Only)
Kohima, December 24 (MExN): The Nagaland Government has notified the inclusion of additional functional classifications under Category (d) and Category (e) for identified posts reserved for persons with benchmark disabilities (PwD).
The move, notified by the Personnel & Administrative Reforms (P&AR) Department on December 8, is in continuation of the State Government’s August 13, 2020 notification and follows guidelines issued by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in January 2021.
The revised provisions have come into force with immediate effect, it added.
According to the notification, updated functional classifications have been issued for identified posts across Group A, B, C and D services, covering administrative, technical, educational, medical and allied departments.
Group A coverage
For Group A services, PwD reservation has been extended to senior and gazetted posts across multiple departments. These include civil administration and governance posts such as EAC (NCS), Block Development Officer and Land Records & Survey Officer; academic and education-related posts such as Assistant Professors, Lecturers (Arts, Science, Technical Education and DIET) and Librarians; and health and medical services including Medical Officers, Dental Surgeons, Assistant Surgeons and Veterinary Assistant Surgeons.
The notification also covers technical and engineering positions such as SDO (Engineering), Scientific Officers, Mining and Geological officers, as well as posts in IT, research, planning, environment and urban development, including Programme Officers (IT&C), Analysts, Environment Officers, Town Planners and Architects.
Group B coverage
In Group B services, the revised reservation framework applies to a wide range of middle-level administrative, technical and field posts. These include Assistant Project Officers, Employment Officers, Assistant Election Officers and Junior Accounts Officers; health and allied posts such as Physiotherapists, Community Health Officers, Food Analysts and Immunisation Officers; and technical roles including Programmers, GIS Analysts, Computer Engineers and Data Managers.
The notification further extends coverage to State Media Officers, Cameramen, Photo Technicians, as well as field-level positions such as Forest Rangers, Inspectors (Excise, Vigilance) and District Disaster Management Officers.
Group C coverage
Group C services see extensive inclusion across clerical, technical, teaching and support posts. These include Secretariat Assistants, Stenographers, Judicial Assistants and Record Keepers; teaching positions such as Graduate Teachers, Hindi Teachers, Physical Education Teachers and Junior Lecturers; and technical and laboratory posts including Lab Technicians, Computer Application Supervisors and Technicians.
Media and cultural roles such as Cameramen, Photographers and Artists, along with support and supervisory posts like Supervisors, Caretakers and Project Assistants, have also been brought under the revised classification.
Group D coverage
The notification also provides explicit and extensive coverage for Group D services, with over 140 Group D posts identified in Annexure-A as suitable for persons with benchmark disabilities, subject to functional requirements.
These include a wide range of office and institutional support roles such as Peon, Daftry, Messenger, Room Attendant, Hostel Attendant, Court Attendant and Store Attendant; security and guarding duties including Chowkidar, Watchman, Gatekeeper and Museum Guard; and sanitation and maintenance work such as Sweeper, Cleaner, Sanitation Attendant and Dhobi.
Group D coverage further extends to skilled and semi-skilled posts, including Carpenter, Mason, Plumber, Painter and Electrician helpers, as well as health and laboratory support roles such as Medical Attendant, O.T. Attendant and Laboratory Attendant. Posts linked to agriculture, animal husbandry and field work, including Mali, Field Worker, Animal Attendant and Ploughman, are also covered.
Eligibility for Group D posts has been extended to persons falling under Category (d)—including autism spectrum disorder, specific learning disability, intellectual disability and mental illness—and Category (e), covering multiple disabilities, wherever functional suitability permits.
Disability categories
The notification places specific emphasis on expanding coverage for Category (d) disabilities—covering Autism Spectrum Disorder, Specific Learning Disability, Intellectual Disability and Mental Illness—and Category (e), which includes multiple disabilities involving combinations of disabilities listed under Categories (a) to (d).
Each post has been mapped with defined functional requirements, such as sitting, standing, walking, reading and writing, hearing and communication, to guide recruiting agencies in implementing PwBD reservation effectively.
Identification of posts and safeguards
The notification also reiterated the principles governing the identification of posts for persons with benchmark disabilities, as mandated under Section 33 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
An Expert Committee constituted in August 2019 had identified posts suitable to be held by persons with benchmark disabilities, along with their physical and functional requirements, across Group A, B, C and D services. These posts are subject to revision from time to time to ensure implementation of the four per cent reservation.
The government clarified that the nomenclature used for a post will also apply to other comparable posts with identical functions, even if they carry a different designation. While departments may identify additional posts beyond those already listed, no department is permitted to exclude any identified post from the purview of reservation at its own discretion.
It was further stated that if an identified post is shifted from one group or grade to another due to changes in pay scale or service conditions, the post will continue to remain identified for persons with benchmark disabilities.
The notification also mandated that all government establishments must ensure a conducive working environment for employees with benchmark disabilities upon appointment, in line with the Nagaland Rights of Persons with Disabilities Rules, 2019.
In addition, if a post is already held by a person with a benchmark disability, it shall be deemed to have been identified for that category. Similarly, where a feeder-grade post is identified, all corresponding promotional posts will also stand identified.
The government further clarified that posts with identical nature and place of work to any identified post will be treated as identified, even if they are placed in a different group or carry a different nomenclature.
