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Laws should be revised if cannabis is to be cultivated: Ayurveda drugs chief
View(s):Sri Lanka Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation Chairman Sagala Abhayawickreme said laws should be amended and stringently enforced if the cultivation of cannabis is to be permitted for exports and the large-scale manufacture of medicinal drugs.
Commenting on the recent government proposal to cultivate cannabis for Ayurvedic medicines and export purposes, Ms. Abhayawickreme said that at present, it is illegal to consume or cultivate cannabis, except under the Ayurveda Act. Provisions of the act allow the use of cannabis for Ayurvedic purposes, with the process being administered by an Ayurvedic physician. 
Sagala Abhayawickreme. Pic by Indika Handuwala
Ms. Abhayawickreme said Indigenous Medicine State Minister Sisira Jayakody had long campaigned for the legalisaion of cannabis cultivation to produce Ayurvedic drugs. Tourism State Minister Diana Gamage also recently put forward a similar proposal, pointing out that the export of Cannabidiol (CBD) or Hemp oil extracted from cannabis could offer a solution to Sri Lanka’s forex crisis.
“Drugs containing cannabis require a prescription from a registered Ayurvedic physician, and cannot be bought over-the-counter,” Ms. Abhayawickreme, an attorney-at-law, said,
These drugs are commonly used to relieve aches and pains in muscles and to treat neurological ailments and illnesses affecting the nervous system.
To manufacture cannabis-based ayurvedic drugs, the Ayurvedic Drugs Corporation used cannabis produced in court cases, she said. However, she pointed out that such cannabis was usually old due to the lengthy period of court cases, and hence its medicinal value had been reduced.
“The corporation issues powdered cannabis to Ayurvedic drug manufacturers upon the approval of the Ayurvedic Commissioner, and only after it is mixed with ghee oil or semi-manufactured drugs brought by Ayurvedic manufacturers,” she said, adding that, “so, there is no way for others to obtain pure cannabis.”
She also pointed out that cannabis used by the Ayurvedic Drug Corporation was sent through a proper purification process to nullify harmful substances.
Ms. Abhayawickreme said that to harness the maximum benefit from the export of cannabis it must be processed to make CBD oil, a high-value-added item.
“Since the government does not have the technology or the funds to proceed with such a project, a private-public partnership would have to be instituted to manufacture and export Hemp oil,” she said.
Ms. Abhayawickreme said she believed cannabis could generate much-needed income for Sri Lanka if it was used for the manufacture of Ayurvedic medicine. She also pointed out that hard drugs including Heroin and Ice (Methamphetamine) create much more harmful social impacts than cannabis.
If cannabis could be grown under strict regulations by the government, there was little chance of misusing it, she said.
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