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Children and teacher at the Creche supported by the Lnnko Mohilo Sumiti (The Women's Institute: of Ceylon). The Lanka Mahili Samiti One of the prime interests of the Lanka Maâ€" hili Samiti is the operation of over seventy creches and nursing schools throughout the isâ€" land of Ceylon. The purpose of establishing these creches and nursing schools is to provide the small children with suitable environment for education and growth and also has the in- tention of freeing their mothers during the daytime hours to enable them to do productive work. The women’s movement operates milk feeding centres, vaccination campaigns and health education programs in the rural areas with the assistance and cooperation from the Island‘s Department of Health. In the last few decades the Women’s Institutes have achieved tremendous success in maintaining better perâ€" sonal and environmental sanitation in the rural areas. They also receive assistance not only Rice seedlings being transplanted in o paddy by rural women in Ceylon. v WINTER 1 970 from the various government departments but also from a number of foreign organizations. The creche in the village of Wewala is typiâ€" cal. It has an average attendance of twenty pre-school children. A young girl of twentyâ€" two who has received her training at the Insti- tute’s Training Centre at Kaduwela runs the day to day affairs of the creche under the diâ€" rect supervision of the Women‘s Institute Headquarters at Colombo, the capital of Ceyâ€" Ion. The Women's Institutes of Ceylon (W.I.C.) which is a charitable organization, were started by an Ontario woman, Dr. Mary Run-1am, about forty years ago. During the past years the W.I.C. has played a decisive role in the welfare and development of the rural women in Ceylon and now the Women's Institutes are credited with having over two thousand branch societies scattered throughout the is- land. At all times the Women‘s Institute has worked in close cooperation with the govern- ment of Ceylon in common national en‘ deavours. The Women’s Institutes have always been mindful of the vital role played by agriculture in the economy of the island._They have inten- sified their agricultural programs in keeping with the present national urgency in agriculâ€" tural development and food production. The rural women were encouraged to expand their home gardens and community plots where veg- etables and subsidiary crops are grown 21