Saturday Nov 23, 2024
Saturday Nov 23, 2024
Friday, 17 March 2017 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Women across the world are celebrated and appreciated on 8 March, and Mount Lavinia Hotel also joined in this celebration. “The difference is we wanted to do something sustainable for women,” says Mount Lavinia Hotel Group General Manager Bazeer Cassim. With this in mind MLH took the initiative to refurbish the dilapidated Ladies Waiting Room at the Mount Lavinia Railway Station and hand it over to the public this Women’s Day. MLH carried out this project as the first phase of a project to renovate the Mount Lavinia Hotel Railway Station as a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts.
The Mount Lavinia Railway Station is a transit point to thousands of commuters daily; including working women and tourists. Through this project, MLH aims to uplift the community, and ensure the safety and comfort of hundreds of commuters who regularly utilise the railway station as a transit point. Addressing the event Station Master at the Mount Lavinia Railway Station, J.A. Saman Kumara pointed out that, “Construction of this waiting room for women was a dire need at the railway station. There are ladies travelling for work, expectant mothers, school children and other students, mothers with children as well as female tourists who regularly pass through this station. There are over a hundred stops at the station daily. The lack of a safe waiting area for all women was felt by many. Thanks to Mount Lavinia Hotel, now that problem is solved.”
MLH Group General Manager Cassim also adds that, “We are responsible for each other’s well being and Mount Lavinia Hotel always recognises the need to uplift the community. When we visited the Railway Station for a project last year for a CSR project on World Tourism Day, we saw the dire need for a resting area for women; who travel to the station after a long journey or wait for awhile to catch their next train. We truly believe that this is a sustainable project that will help all women travelling through this station and this will ensure their safety and comfort.”
The newly improved ladies waiting room at the Mount Lavinia Railway Station was declared open by the Principal of the Girls High School Mount Lavinia H.A. Gayani Princely who reiterated that, “It is truly commendable that the Mount Lavinia Hotel took a initiative of this nature to uplift the standards of the women and the community, without limiting this day to just another event filled with speeches.” Among the other dignitaries present at the event were Resident Manager Harinda Weeerasinghe of Mount Lavinia Hotel; V.S. Polwatte Deputy Operating Superintendent and Nalaka Bandara, Additional General Manager – Operations Sri Lanka Railways.
The refurbished Ladies Waiting Room is equipped with facilities such as washrooms, changing areas for females and children, while MLH will also assign a dedicated person to maintain the cleanliness of the waiting room. Additional measures have also been taken to ensure the safety of women utilising the waiting room at the Mount Lavinia Railway Station.
