Centre defers new exam guidelines for disabled students till Dec 31

The government has deferred the implementation of its recently issued revised guidelines for conducting competitive examinations for persons with disabilities (PwDs) until the year end, citing lack of preparedness among examining bodies and the immediate interest of candidates.

In an office memorandum, the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) clarified that all competitive public examinations notified until the end of this year may continue under the existing framework.

"In view of the likely lack of preparedness of examining bodies for introduction and application of technology for conduct of exams and keeping in mind both larger and immediate interest of the Divyangjan community, this is to state that all the competitive public examinations notified/ to be notified until and including December 31, 2025 may be conducted as per the system in vogue before issuing the said guidelines," the memorandum said.

However, candidates willing to use assistive technologies to attempt exams independently during this period may be "accommodated and encouraged by examining bodies to the reasonable extent possible," the memorandum said.

The department said that in the meantime, it shall undertake wider and more extensive stakeholder consultations on the subject of examination guidelines, including various examining bodies, divyang community and other stakeholders.

The clarification follows the government's last month's notification of comprehensive new guidelines under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016 and the Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.

Those rules had tightened provisions around the use of scribes, directing agencies like UPSC, SSC, and the National Testing Agency to create vetted scribe pools within two years, and phasing out the widely used "own scribe" system that authorities flagged for malpractice.

Instances of collusion between candidates and privately arranged scribes had raised concerns about fairness and transparency, prompting the ministry to stress a shift towards technology-driven solutions and supervised scribe pools.

Officials said the deferment is aimed at ensuring that examining bodies have adequate time to prepare for the technological transition while also safeguarding the interests of candidates appearing in the immediate examination cycle.

The DEPwD said it will hold wider consultations with stakeholders, including examining agencies and the disability community, before finalising the framework's implementation.

All ministries, departments, and agencies have been directed to strictly adhere to the revised timelines and ensure compliance.