The lack of service delivery is the cause for many issues faced by the Malaiyaga Tamils. To address them NPC conducted a mobile service in the Sapumalkanda estate in the Kegalle District under its Protecting Civic Space in Sri Lanka Legal Action Worldwide (LAW) project.

After 200 years since their arrival from South India, the Malaiyaga Tamil community continues to lack respectful citizenship and rights regarding public services.

People around the Sapumalkanda estate, including school children who do not have a national identity card or birth certificate, benefited from the mobile services.

Because many people were not aware of public service delivery by the government, they did not have a birth certificate, marriage certificate or a national identity card. If they wanted to get these documents, they were required to provide a letter from the estate manager certifying their residence on the estate. The estate management does not facilitate this process. The Grama Niladari, who works closely with the public and is responsible for the implementation of public services, is unable to read and write Tamil.

“This mobile service is very useful for us. Please continue this service so that others will also get the benefit in the future,” said one recipient.