Kurunegala District Inter Religious Committee (DIRC), under NPC’s Plural Action for Conflict Transformation (PACT) project, facilitated a forum for state officials and the media to discuss the problems faced by people in Bathalagoda Estate in Kurunegala to mitigate the conflict, aiming at resolution through legal means rather than confrontation. The programme was conducted with the objective educating the estate community on land rights, human rights and child protection.

The estate community is one of the most marginalised communities in Sri Lanka, who face structural violence on daily basis on education, health, employment and representation. While there are some development interventions, there is low awareness on these interventions among the community, particularly on peace building and human rights.

The management of the Bathalagoda estate suddenly instructed workers residing there to vacate without providing a reason for their decision, resulting in a conflict between the management and the workers whose lives revolve around estate. The management has sold over a 100 acres of the estate, including the estate workers' cemetery.

The discussion was attended by the Divisional Secretary, Planning Director, Social Integration Officer, Social Development Officer, NGO Coordinator and Grama Niladarai representing Ibbagamuwa. The TV channel Swarnavahini and the print media covered the workers' issues.

Kurunegala DIRC distributed handbooks, posters and flyers to create awareness on human rights and supported efforts to find a volunteer lawyer to continue a legal case against the estate management over land rights. It also found NGOs to provide financial support for the legal action. After these discussions, the estate management decided to transfer ownership of land to the estate workers through freehold deeds, marking the culmination of a year long effort involving estate workers, management, state officials and Kurunegala DIRC.