Stuk 0023 - Leelawathie Gunaratna — Ceylon's Professional Woman Mechanic

326-IM-0022-0023

Leelawathie Gunaratna — Ceylon's Professional Woman Mechanic

• 1962-01-21 (Vervaardig)

Stuk

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The Times of Ceylon Press

Daily Mirror

In these times of equality of the sexes, it is good to see a woman doing a man's job—and doing it well (Above) Leelawathie is seen wearing a tube.
When you want a tyre of your car changed you either do it yourself or take it your favourite 'baas'. Well, if you ever have a puncture while on the Kandy road the chances are that the job might be done for you by a woman. Yes—a woman.
Leelawathie Baasunnahe of Kadawata is probably Ceylon's only professional woman motor mechanic. Her workshop is very popular with motorists travelling to and from Kandy, for she has a thorough knowledge of motor mechanism—an she does a good job on cycles, too.
Twenty six year old Olandage Leelawathie Gunaratna acquired her knowledge by watching her husband in his workshop. She picked up the work so fast that her husband left her to it and became a chauffeur.
Leelawathie's popularity with motorists is sue to the fact that she attends to them immediately, works diligently and has no standard fee for a particular job of work. "Give anything you like," is the reply she gives anyone who asks what her charges are.
Leelawathie has always found this practice more profitable—customers almost always give her a little extra to encourage her in her work.
Her average daily income is about ten rupees.
At present she undertakes only cycle repairs and vulcanising as her workshop is too small to take in more work.
But Leelawathie is an enterprising woman. She intends to open her own garage once she has collected sufficient funds for the purpose.
Then it will be work on a big scale.

• Extraordinary

• Sri Lanka
• Sri Lanka » Kadawatha

• The Times of Ceylon Press (Archiefvormer)
• Daily Mirror (Archiefvormer)

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22 mei 2015 01:16