The duty of the State to address the healthcare needs of specially abled persons, including the prevention of disability through early detection and treatment, as outlined in the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995, Section 25, and the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights, Article 12.

JUDGMENT

Tarlok Singh Chauhan, J. - The petitioner is specially abled person suffering from a rare genetic disorder called "Haemophilia". He was appointed as Junior Basic Teacher (for short 'JBT') vide office order dated 10.05.2019 and posted at GPS, Farehar (Drang-II), District Mandi, Himachal Pradesh

2. The petitioner is a resident of District Kangra and aggrieved by his order of posting at District Mandi, filed Original Application No.2033 of 2019 before the learned Administrative Tribunal. On 22.5.2019, the learned Tribunal disposed of the Original Application by passing the following directions:

"However, in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the present case, particularly the illness with which the applicant is afflicted and the documents filed alongwith the original application, the applicant shall be at liberty to apply for inter-district transfer to the competent authority with prayer for relaxation of qualifying service for such transfer, who shall consider the same in accordance with the rules/law, sympathetically as expeditiously as possible, preferably within three months from the date of submission of the representation."

3. In compliance to the directions of the learned Tribunal, the petitioner preferred a detailed representation before the competent authority on 10.07.2019. However, the same was rejected by respondent No.2 vide order dated 20.09.2019 on the ground that in the transfer policy there was no provision for transfer of employees appointed on contractual basis. Furthermore, it was stated that the petitioner should have considered his disability prior to applying for appointment against the post of JBT in another District.

4. Aggrieved by the aforesaid order, the petitioner has approached this Court by filing the instant petition for the grant of following reliefs:

"I. The petitioner may kindly be transferred to:

a. Govt. Primary School, Rakkar Block Rakkar, District Kangra.

b. Govt. Central Primary School, Kaloha Block Rakkar, District Kangra.

Or any other suitable location near the native place of the petitioner that this Hon'ble Court may deem fit."

5. The respondents have contested the petition by filing reply wherein it is stated that the petitioner being JBT is borne on District Cadre post and cannot be transferred out of District under 3% quota before completing thirteen years of service. It is once again reiterated that the petitioner belongs to District Kangra, yet he applied for the post in District Mandi and having been selected, has no one to blame except himself.

6. We have heard learned counsel for the parties and have gone through the material placed on record.

7. At the outset, it needs to be observed that there is no complete bar in inter-district transfers, rather 3% quota has been kept reserved for this purpose. This position is not even disputed by the official respondents.

8. Going by the stand taken by the respondents, we are clearly of the view that probably the respondents have no understanding of the disease 'Haemophilia' or else they would not have adopted such a stiff stand.

9. Hemophilia is a genetic and severe type of bleeding disorder and if not taken care of bleeding can turn into permanent severe disability or can even lead to death.

10. In Loyal's Medical Dictionary by Dr. Sri Nandan Bansal published by International Publishing House, "Haemophilia" is defined as "A hereditary hemorrhagic disease in which blood fails to clot due to deficiency of a blood coagulation factor and abnormal bleeding occurs with swelling of the joints.".

11. Haemophilia is the commonest form of inherited bleeding disorder and the burden of the disease is the second highest in India after the USA. It is a rare and complex condition arising from congenital deficiencies of coagulation factors, i.e. factor VIII protein (Haemophilia A) and factor IX protein (Haemophilia B). The disorder results from defective gene mutation.

12. Article 12 of the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Hum