Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corp completes 40 years

Nalin Mervyn FERNANDO Managing Director - Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation

The Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation was established on May 11, 1969, by the then Minister of Industries and Fisheries Philip Gunawardena by Extra Special Gazette Notification No. 14853/3 under the Development of Corporations Act No. 49 of 1957 with the pure intention of supplying the drugs necessary for the system of Ayurvedic medicine at a high standard and without any difficulty.

The system of Ayurvedic medicine being the oldest system of medicine in the world became widespread about six decades ago and was becoming very popular in Sri Lanka.

There were no large scale facilities for the manufacture of drugs in the country at that time and the Ayurvedic doctors of that era used to manufacture the necessary drugs in small scale drug manufacturing facilities established in their homes in the villages they lived in.

The necessary medicinal ingredients were imported from India or other countries of the East. The cost of imported Ayurvedic medicinal ingredients was very high, and people reverting to the system of Ayurvedic medicine had to undergo the difficulty of paying very high prices for Ayurvedic preparations.

Considering the availability of learned Ayurvedic doctors capable of manufacturing complicated medicinal compounds referring ancient Ola Leaf documents and the difficulties faced by the people, the then Government established the Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation on May 11, 1969, with State patronage.

The basic vision of establishing this Corporation was that the Corporation will be a service oriented pioneering entity fulfilling national and international drug requirements under the highest standards preserving the identity of the local medical science towards a healthy nation.

The primary mission of this Corporation is to import and distribute Ayurvedic drugs and ingredients of a high standard, supplying inspection services and conservation thereby fulfilling the necessities of the population pioneering a healthy nation while uplifting the living standards of the workers of the Corporation.

The primary aims of establishing the Corporation were,

Manufacturing Ayurvedic drugs, ingredients and processes preparations under the highest standards,

Completely fulfilling the Ayurvedic medicine needs of Provincial Councils and Pradesheeya Sabhas and becoming the main supplier of the competitive Ayurvedic drug market,

Importing ingredients essential to manufacture Ayurveda, Siddha, Yunani and raw medicinal ingredients and marketing to suit the necessities of the local market.

Buying the locally manufactured raw ingredients under a realistic standardized pricing scheme, storing and selling at fair prices thereby protecting the producers and obtaining optimum prices for their products. Implementing programs to conserve the medicinal herbs necessary for the manufacture of Ayurvedic medicine and to expand the herb crops,

Carrying out research on increasing the quality of the Ayurvedic medicines and standardizing the drug preparations,

Maintaining Ayurvedic dispensaries and manufacturing ingredients essential to the manufacture of Ayurvedic preparations,

Working to preserve the methods of traditional medicine by legally obtaining and distributing forbidden medicinal ingredients and explosive ingredients among traditional Ayurvedic physicians.

The corporation is acting with great dedication to achieve these primary aims and manufacturing drugs during the past four decades as the pioneering institution manufacturing medicine to the nation. By this year, the Corporation is annually manufacturing drugs worth 240 million rupees.

The Corporation supplies drugs for all the Ayurvedic hospitals administered by the Ministry of Indigenous Medicine and indigenous medicinal ingredients to the open market. By the year 2009, Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation is manufacturing 140 varieties of drugs and Arishthas, Distillations, Medicinal Oils, Kwatha preparations, Syrups, Rasa medicinal preparations, Watika, Gugul, Kalka, Leha, Lepa and Churna are the major preparations manufactured by the Corporation. Other than these, the Corporation has introduced Suwasetha Paspanguva, Instant Peyawa, Thambum Hodi, Ranahansa Rasayanaya and Thripala tablets to the people as new products.

Though the Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation seems to be a commercially oriented at first glance, the primary aim of this Corporation is serving the people. Though the primary aim of the Corporation is not generating profits, by the end of the year 2008, the Corporation showed a profit of Rs. 50 million.

The main factor behind this is the present efficient administration. Another major factor is that the market being secure for Ayurvedic preparations and drugs of a high standard.

The administration authorities during the past 4 decades have made several important contributions towards the progress of the Corporation and many new products have been introduced to the people through many Ayurvedic books. The new Ayurvedic preparations discovered through research is being manufactured by the Corporation itself.

The manufacture of drugs in the institution has faced many challenges but the drugs needed by the people are supplied to the market with the greatest difficulty.

There is a great scarcity of local Ayurvedic ingredients due to large scale deforestation destroying many medicinal herbs and the legal issues that crop up with the transportation of medicinal herbs thereby delaying the supply. Some medicinal plants are facing extinction today, adding further difficulties to the manufacturing of some Ayurvedic drugs.

Apart from this, the major challenge faced by the Corporation today is that the prices of some Ayurvedic preparations manufactured by the private sector being lower in price than drugs prepared to the correct standards.

Some Ayurvedic drug manufactures of the private sector manufacture Ayurvedic preparations without adhering to any standard using sub-standard raw material and sell them in the open market at much lower prices.

The names of the preparations manufactured and marketed by the Corporation and these private sector companies are the same, but they are sub standard.

The people should be educated on this all important matter, but the process of education is proceeding at a snail’s pace.

Many new processes were implemented during the past two years for the progress of the Corporation and the steam boiler in operation at present is equipped with all modern parts. The bottle filling machine is equipped with ultra modern technology.

A program to double the production in the near future using ultra modern equipment is being implemented and the necessary ingredients will be imported from India and other countries and the locally obtainable ingredients are being supplied from the Osu gammana (Medicine Villages) activated under the Ministry of Indigenous Medicine, with the basic aim of our Corporation, supplying drugs of a high standard to the nation.

The Corporation has a dedicated and well-trained efficient staff and their dedication to the system of Ayurveda medicine is a major support to the Corporation.

The present President has a deep belief in Ayurvedic medicine and the Minister of Indigenous Medicine Tissa Karaliyadde also advices us regularly on the progress of the Corporation protecting indigenous medicine.

The Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation that worked for the past four decades to protect the health of the nation will continue to safeguard your health with the same dedication in the future.