CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government has amended the State Judicial Service recruitment rules to prescribe separate qualifying marks for persons with benchmark disabilities (PwBD) applying for direct recruitment to District Judge (Entry Level) and Civil Judge posts.

The amendment was issued through Government Order by the Home (Courts-I) Department, following Supreme Court directions in 2024 and recommendations from the Madras High Court.

The order amends the Tamil Nadu State Judicial Service (Cadre and Recruitment) Rules, 2007. The proposed amendments were approved by the Full Court of the Madras High Court.

Under the revised criteria for District Judge (Entry Level) recruitment, PwBD candidates must secure at least 30 per cent of the marks in each paper. The minimum qualifying mark is 35 per cent for candidates belonging to the Backward Classes, Backward Class Muslims and Most Backward Classes/Denotified Communities, and 40 per cent for candidates in the other category.

For direct recruitment to Civil Judge posts, PwBD candidates must secure at least 35 per cent of the marks in each paper of the main examination. The corresponding minimum is 40 per cent for candidates belonging to the specified backward-class categories and 45 per cent for candidates in the other category.

The revised rules lay down category-wise qualifying thresholds for the two judicial cadres. The government order states that the amendment will be published in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette Extraordinary.