The annual awards night of Finlays Tea Estates was held on September 30, 2017 at the JieJie Beach resort, Panadura.
Finlay’s two plantation Company’s Hapugastenne and Udapussellawa were celebrating their 25thyear since the incorporation in year 1992.
The momentous occasion this year coincided with the 150th year of the Tea Industry of Sri Lanka and it was a fitting occasion to celebrate this event which was held with much fanfare and glory to recognize the contributions made by the Estate Managers and their Assistants and the staff of the Head Office during the years 2015 and 2016, which were both challenging years for the Industry.
As always, the occasion was graced by the Chairman of Finlay’s Tea Estates, Naresh Ratwatte and his spouse Surangani, the Director Chief Executive Officer, Dushan Ratwatte and his spouse Anu and other senior and junior Managers and their spouses. In all, there had been a gathering of approximately 120 in attendance.
Finlay’s Estates comprises of two Companies, namely Hapugastenne and Udapussellawa Plantations PLC. There are 30 Tea and Tea cum Rubber estates within the Company comprising of 6000 ha of Tea, _1800 ha of Rubber, 2500 Ha of Timber plantations and 500 ha of ancillary crops.
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| Chairman and Surangani cutting the Anniversary cake |
22Tea Factories are in operation producing Orthodox, CTC, Green Tea and Oolong Tea.
These two companies employ a large workforce of over 15000 today ,which has dwindled over the years due to outer migration.
The Chairman in his address, welcoming all the guests for the gathering ,congratulated everyone who had made valuable contributions to the Company irrespective of whether they receive awards or not.
Relating to the Tea Industry which was celebrating its 150th year this year, has had its ups and downs but has been resilient and survived the dark ages of the industry where some pundits had written off.
He also stressed on the importance of the Planter, who is the man on the spot, as it is he who drives the plantation and generates the revenue to sustain the business.
He did congratulate all who were present and the others who have since retired for their contribution to the company and the industry as a whole to have achieved these milestones.
The CEO Dushanth Ratwatte congratulated all the winners and gave a motivational speech to encourage the younger generation to take more responsibilities in the future and also stressed the importance of team work in especially challenging times.
Awards were presented to the best estate that had continuous improvements in areas of production productivity, Health and safety, risk Management, Prices for their respective products and maintenance of estate assets including their respective bungalows and gardens.
Senior Manager, Courtlodge Estate Lasantha Samarakoon, carried away the award for the “ Best Strategic business unit for 2015 “Whilst Galaboda estate was the overall winner of the Best Strategic business unit for 2016, the Manager, Dharshana Diyagamawas was the winner of this award.
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