Supreme Court Directs UPSC to Ensure Accessibility for Disabled Candidates; Orders Policy Reforms on Scribe Change and Screen Reader Facilities
Case Name: Mission Accessibility v. Union of India & Others
Citation: 2025 INSC 1376
Date of Judgment/Order: 03 December 2025
Bench: Vikram Nath, J.; Sandeep Mehta, J.
Held: The Supreme Court held that UPSC must ensure meaningful accessibility for candidates with disabilities by instituting clear, consistent, and reasonable procedures enabling scribe changes up to seven days before the examination, and by transitioning toward the use of Screen Reader Software for visually impaired candidates. The Court noted that while UPSC had taken an in-principle decision to introduce screen-reader-based accessibility, the absence of a concrete implementation plan, infrastructure readiness, or timelines required judicial directions. It ruled that rights under Articles 14 and 21, read with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, mandate not just formal equality but substantive inclusion, requiring examination systems to remove real barriers faced by candidates with disabilities.
Summary: The petitioner organization sought a mandamus directing UPSC to modify its Civil Services Examination procedures by allowing scribe details to be furnished closer to the exam date, permitting laptop use with screen readers, and providing accessible digital question papers. UPSC’s affidavits revealed partial accommodation—agreeing to consider scribe-change requests but remaining silent on screen-reader facilities initially. Subsequent filings confirmed UPSC’s policy decision to introduce Screen Reader Software, though implementation was hindered by its dependence on State Governments, NIEPVD, DEPwD, and local examination centres. The petitioner argued that policy intent without actionable timelines left disabled candidates vulnerable to ongoing exclusion. The Supreme Court accepted that a substantial part of the grievance had been addressed but held that accessibility could not remain aspirational. After examining correspondence, operational constraints, and statutory rights, the Court emphasized the constitutional duty to remove systemic barriers and directed the creation of clear implementation frameworks, standardization protocols, and inter-agency coordination.
Decision: The Supreme Court disposed of the writ petition by issuing binding directions: (i) UPSC must allow scribe-change requests until at least seven days before any examination and decide each request through a reasoned order within three working days; (ii) UPSC must file a comprehensive compliance affidavit within two months detailing its roadmap, timelines, testing protocols, and infrastructure planning for deploying Screen Reader Software and accessible digital question papers; (iii) UPSC, DEPwD, NIEPVD, and DoPT must jointly formulate uniform guidelines and protocols for assistive technologies; and (iv) all measures must uphold full accessibility while ensuring confidentiality and security of examinations. The matter was directed to be listed again on 16 February 2026 to review compliance. Pending applications were disposed of.