Sri Lanka’s Cabinet of Ministers has approved a USD 225,000 contract with India’s Reliance Life Sciences Pvt Ltd to procure 6,000 pre-filled syringes of Adalimumab, a biologic medication used to treat chronic and autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis.
The award follows an international competitive bidding process in which four bidders submitted proposals for the 40mg (0.8ml) syringes. Cabinet Spokesman and Health Minister Nalinda Jayatissa told reporters the contract was given to Reliance Life Sciences as the lowest responsive bidder following recommendations from the High-Level Standing Procurement Committee.
Addressing concerns about the quality of imported medicines, Jayatissa said nearly 85 percent of Sri Lanka’s pharmaceutical supplies are currently sourced from India. “Regardless of whether they come from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, or Europe, all medicines must undergo the regulatory process within the National Medicines Regulatory Authority,” he said.
The minister said the government is maintaining a rigorous inspection regime for high-risk medications. “We have several categories of drugs that we focus on with extra attention. Those that could put lives at risk are constantly being tested and inspected. Registration for those is granted only after the testing process,” he added.
The procurement is part of state efforts to maintain stocks of essential biologic medications used for chronic conditions in both adults and children. Sri Lanka has tightened scrutiny of medical imports following quality failures in several drug batches last year, prompting stricter laboratory testing protocols before clinical use.
The contract is the latest in a series of Cabinet-approved procurement decisions flowing through the High-Level Standing Procurement Committee.
Source: EconomyNext.
