Can PwD and SC/ST/OBC reservations stack?
No — but understanding how they combine still changes your application strategy.
In short
- Disability reservation
- Horizontal — 4%, cuts across every other category
- SC/ST/OBC reservation
- Vertical — separate reserved blocks
- If you qualify for both
- You're placed in one slot (e.g. OBC), not given both separately
Reservation categories in India run on two different axes, and it's easy to assume they simply add together. Disability reservation is horizontal — it cuts across every other category, government-wide, at a fixed 4%. SC, ST, and OBC reservations are vertical — separate blocks of seats reserved for those specific groups. The two don't combine into a bigger number for someone who qualifies for both.
In practice, if you're both OBC and a person with a benchmark disability, you're counted against the 4% disability quota but placed within the OBC vertical slot of that roster — not given an OBC seat and a disability seat separately. Exactly which slot you land in is decided by the recruiting body's roster rules, which is worth asking about directly rather than assuming.
One thing this system does allow, and candidates sometimes don't realise: if your score is strong enough on merit alone, you can also be considered against unreserved General category seats, on top of your reservation status. Reservation is a floor it guarantees, not a ceiling on what you can be considered for.
Researched Aug 2026. General information, not legal advice. Rules and amounts change, so check with the office or the latest notification before you act.
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