In a first, the Supreme Court of India has formally implemented a reservation policy for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) candidates in direct recruitment and promotions across its administrative posts.
A circular issued on June 24 announced that the Model Reservation Roster and Register has been made effective from June 23 this year.
The 167-page document, titled Res. Roster/01/2025, outlines a 200-point reservation framework in compliance with Rule 4A of the Supreme Court Officers and Servants (Conditions of Service and Conduct) Rules, 1961 and the DoPT’s 1997 guidelines.
The roster allocates 15 percent reservation for Scheduled Castes and 7.5 percent for Scheduled Tribes, marking a total of 30 SC and 15 ST earmarked positions within every 200 sanctioned posts.
The reservation matrix spans multiple administrative designations in the court. For each post, a detailed point-based breakdown sets out the exact serial number where an SC or ST vacancy arises, calculated against sanctioned cadre strength.
Among others, the roster includes:
- Senior Personal Assistant (94 sanctioned posts: 14 SC, 6 ST, 74 UR);
- Assistant Librarian (20 posts: 3 SC, 1 ST);
- Junior Court Assistant (437 posts: 65 SC, 32 ST, 340 UR);
- Junior Court Assistant-cum-Junior Programmer (20 posts: 3 SC, 1 ST);
- Junior Court Attendant (600 posts: reservation distributed over 200+ serialised entries);
- Chamber Attendant (105 posts; SC 16, 8 ST, 85 UR).
Each roster strictly follows fractional entitlement to ensure compliance. For example, in the Junior Court Assistant cadre, the 7th, 15th, 20th, 27th, and so on posts are earmarked for SC candidates, while ST vacancies appear on the 14th, 28th, 40th points and so forth. Each designation’s roster is uniquely structured to reflect its specific cadre size.
Alongside rosters, Part II of the document includes Initial Reservation Registers for each post. These are tabulated appointment logs capturing the reservation status of each filled post, enabling tracking of real-time compliance. These registers function as live documents to be updated upon each recruitment cycle.
The June 24 circular has been circulated among all Supreme Court employees and registrars. It directs staff to access the uploaded roster and register on Supnet, the court’s internal network.
Any objections relating to inaccuracies must be routed to the Registrar (Recruitment), providing a formal channel for redress.
Apart from the reservation roster, a June 24 circular to all SC staff reads:
"As per the directions of the Competent Authority, it is to notify for the information of all concerned that the Model Reservation Roster and Register has been uploaded on the Supnet and it is made effective from 23.06.2025."