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FSP alleges pressure from New Delhi to hand over drug supply contract to Indian firm

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Health Minister denies wrongdoing and says there were no bids for tender

By Rathindra Kuruwita and Upali de Seram

The proposal to handover supplying of drugs to government hospitals to an Indian company has come from a senior Indian official, Education Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Pubudu Jayagoda told The Island on Friday (30).

He said that a Cabinet proposal was presented on 15 August 2024 by the Health Minister to entrust drug supplies to an Indian company. Currently, drugs are supplied by the Medical Supplies Division of the Health Ministry.

“The Cabinet paper says the proposal came from an Indian official on 12 August. This is not a state of India, we are not a vessel state. How can the Indians tell us this?” he asked.

Jayagoda said that the Indian company is to supply drugs without being subjected to the regulations and quality assurance procedures of the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA).

“How can we stop substandard Indian drugs from flooding the country? In 2023, 115 drugs were identified as substandard drugs. Out of this, 65 are drugs that came from India. The Health Minister says we have to accept if India says the drugs adhere to necessary quality standards. The Sri Lankan Health Minister is not a servant of the Indian Health Secretary. The Sri Lankan government is responsible for the quality of drugs in Sri Lanka, especially the drugs in state run hospitals,” he said.

Jayagoda added that no other pharmaceutical company is eligible for such concessions. If implemented, this scheme puts millions of Sri Lankan lives at risk.

“This will also undermine our sovereignty on all fronts. People must unite to stop these insidious plots to undermine the state,” he said.

In response, Health Minister Ramesh Pathirana said that there had been no bids for a tender to procure 37 essential drugs. Indian companies, registered with the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA), would be given the chance to supply these drugs, he said.

There was no pressure from India, he added.

“President Ranil Wickremesinghe has advised to get high quality drugs through India if possible. We have not given any permission to import substandard drugs from India,” he said



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President and representatives of IMF discuss progress of EFF

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A comprehensive discussion regarding the progress of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) took place on Thursday (06) at the Presidential Secretariat, between President Anura Kumara Disanayake and the IMF delegation.

The current government has already reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF on the third review regarding the extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) of USD3 billion.

The details of this review are expected to be presented to the International Monetary Fund’s Board of Directors by the end of this month. In this regard, discussions were held regarding the progress and the government’s involvement in continuing the program moving forward.

Once the approval is granted by the IMF Executive Board, Sri Lanka is expected to release the fourth tranche of the extended loan, amounting to 333 million dollars.

The discussion was also attended by IMF Executive Director Dr. Krishnamurthy Subramanian, Alternate Executive Director Dr. P. K. G. Harischandra, Deputy Minister of Economic Development Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando, Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Mahinda Siriwadana, and Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe.

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New Commanders of the Tri-Forces meet the President

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The newly appointed Commander of the Tri-Forces met with Commander-in-Chief, President Anura Kumara Disanayake on Thursday (6th)  afternoon  at the Presidential Secretariat.

The meeting was attended by Lieutenant General Lasantha Rodrigo, the new Army Commander; Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda, the new Navy Commander and Air Marshal Vasu Bandu Edirisinghe, the new Air Force Commander.

Following tradition, the new commanders formally met with the President after assuming their duties. During the meeting, they also presented the President with a commemorative token.

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Musk reveals ‘crazy waste’ of USAID funds in Sri Lanka

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Elon Musk

USD 7.9 mn spent on teaching Lankan journalists how to avoid “binary-gendered language”

USAID has spent $7.9 million to teach Sri Lankan journalists how to avoid “binary-gendered language”, Elon Musk who heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) said in a post on X on Thursday.

Musk called it a “Crazy waste of your tax money!”

Musk’s criticism came with a detailed breakdown of USAID’s spending across various countries, which he argued reflects misguided priorities. According to a document Musk shared, USAID has funded a range of projects globally, including $20 million for a new Sesame Street show in Iraq, $4.5 million to “combat disinformation” in Kazakhstan, and $6 million to transform digital spaces to reflect feminist democratic principles.

The list also included $1.5 million for art projects promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities and $2 million for sex changes and LGBT activism in Guatemala. $10 million worth of USAID-funded meals, allegedly ended up in the hands of an al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group, the document states.

Other USAID programmes include $25 million for Deloitte to promote green transportation in Georgia, $6 million for tourism development in Egypt, and $2.5 million to foster inclusion in Vietnam. The documents also pointed to $5 million awarded to EcoHealth Alliance, a group linked to bat virus research at the Wuhan lab, and $20 million for an organisation tied to what Musk described as a “key player” in the Russiagate impeachment inquiry.

Further funds were allocated for various LGBT-related initiatives worldwide, including $5.5 million for LGBT activism in Uganda, $6.3 million for men who have sex with men in South Africa, $3.9 million for LGBT causes in the western Balkans, and $6 million for advancing LGBT issues globally. Additionally, $2 million was allocated to promote LGBT equality through entrepreneurship in Latin America, while $1.5 million was designated for LGBT advocacy in Jamaica.

The data also highlighted spending closer to home, with $1.2 million going to help the African Methodist Episcopal Church Service and Development Agency in Washington, D.C., build a 440-seat auditorium. A further $1.3 million was provided to Arab and Jewish photographers, while $1.1 million supported an Armenian LGBT group.

Musk criticised other expenditures as well, including $3.9 million for artisanal gold mining in the Amazon and $500,000 aimed at solving sectarian violence in Israel just days before the October 7 Hamas attack.

Attention was also drawn to USAID’s $150 billion “whole-of-agency” climate strategy, which outlines efforts to build an “equitable world” while pursuing net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.

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