Amballoor Initiative Could Well Be First of Its Kind in Country to Anticipate the Spirit of Mediation Act, Says High Court Judge

Amballoor, Ernakulam, Kerala: The Amballoor initiative could well be the first of its kind in the country to anticipate the spirit of the Mediation Act and translate its call for a socio-cultural transformation in people’s attitudes into action at the grassroots, observed Justice Syam Kumar VM, Judge, High Court of Kerala, while launching the 180-day Pilot Programme of the Amballoor Mediation Centre at the Amballoor Panchayat Community Hall, Pallithazham, on Saturday, 19 September 2026. KG Ranjith, President, Amballoor Grama Panchayat, presided over the inaugural function.

Addressing a packed gathering of over 320 people, Justice Syam Kumar also emphasised the growing importance of mediation in the Indian justice system. Referring to the country’s judge-to-population ratio and the demands placed on the courts, he observed that alternatives such as mediation are essential for society to move forward, enabling suitable disputes to be addressed through processes outside conventional adjudication.

The Amballoor Mediation Centre is a joint initiative of Amballoor Grama Panchayat, Sree Narayana Law College, Poothotta, and The Mediation Society. The 180-day Pilot seeks to test whether professional mediation can be made accessible at the neighbourhood level, enabling suitable disputes to be addressed early, before they become entrenched and result in greater personal, social, emotional and financial costs.

The three partner institutions formally exchanged the Memorandum of Understanding in the presence of Bini Shaji, District Panchayat Member.

Jaya Soman, President, Mulanthuruthy Block Panchayat, unveiled the Amballoor Mediation Centre logo, while AD Unnikrishnan, Manager, Sree Narayana Law College, released the public-awareness leaflet on mediation and the Centre. Dr KR Reghunathan delivered the introductory address.

Adv Rajesh C. Muttath, President, The Mediation Society, presented an overview of the project, outlining the objectives, structure and implementation framework of the 180-day Pilot Programme. Adv MK Abdulla read out the Malayalam translation of a felicitation message from the CEO of the International Arbitration and Mediation Centre (IAMC), Hyderabad, the Pilot’s Institutional Observer and Knowledge Partner.

The formal launch marks the beginning of a structured 180-day process intended not merely to provide mediation services, but to test, learn from and progressively develop a workable neighbourhood mediation model. The Pilot will examine how the community responds to the Centre, the nature of disputes brought before it, which disputes are suitable for mediation, how its procedures work in practice, and how effectively the three partner institutions can coordinate their complementary roles.

Under the Amballoor model, Amballoor Grama Panchayat provides social leadership and connects the initiative with the local community; Sree Narayana Law College provides institutional support, facilities and human resources; and The Mediation Society provides technical leadership in mediation, professional systems, trained mediators and overall coordination.

The Pilot will now move into its operational stages, including community-awareness and stakeholder-engagement activities and the gradual commencement of mediation services. The experience generated during the 180 days will be documented and evaluated to determine how to develop a sustainable mediation mechanism in Amballoor and whether, with appropriate adaptations, the learning can inform similar neighbourhood-level initiatives elsewhere.