SC Expands Rights for Disabled in Medical Admissions | 01 Nov 2024

Source: HT

The Supreme Court has ruled against denying individuals educational opportunities based on strict disability criteria. It directed the disability assessment boards to evaluate whether an individual’s impairment genuinely prevents them from completing the course successfully.

The ruling comes amid challenges to the Graduate Medical Education Regulation of 1997, which previously excluded individuals with a disability of 40% or more from MBBS courses.
The SC held that mere existence of benchmark disability of 40% or above (or such other prescribed percentages depending on the disability) will not disqualify a candidate from being eligible for the course applied for.
- It reinforces the importance of individual assessments, advocating for inclusive policies under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
  - The 2016 RPwD Act supports UN conventions on disability rights, aiming to promote and protect the full rights and freedoms of persons with disabilities.
The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) oversees the implementation of the RPwD Act. Disability Assessment Board (DAB) is a designated panel established to evaluate and certify the extent of disability in individuals.
- As per the latest SC ruling, the DABs should positively record whether the disability of the candidate will or will not come in the way of the candidate pursuing the course in question and shall state reasons if the latter appears to be the case.