Interpharm ventures into export of pharmaceuticals

The First Export Agreements being signed by Interpharm/Gamma Chairman/Managing Director Kalana Hewamallika and Point Trading Company Director Hamza Gasim while Technical Director Ruwanthi Murage, Head of Finance Udara Athapattu, Business Development Manager Shabeer Shah of Interpharm/Gamma and Point Trading Company General Manager Abdul Muhammad look on 

Interpharm Ltd. and Gamma Pharmaceuticals Ltd., leading pharmaceutical manufacturing companies in Sri Lanka, opened a new chapter in their operations by venturing into export of their locally manufactured pharmaceuticals.  

Point Trading Ltd., the owners of the largest pharmacy chain in Maldives, became the first foreign buyer of pharmaceuticals being manufactured by Interpharm and Gamma. 

The Distributor Agreements in respect of the export operations were signed by Interpharm/Gamma Chairman/ Managing Director Kalana Hewamallika and Point Trading Company Director Hamza Gasim. 

Kalana Hewamallika, on signing the agreements said, his two companies had in response to the Government’s call to manufacture pharmaceuticals for export, embarked on this endeavour, which will stimulate the flow of foreign money into our country.

“Our two companies are engaged in supplying quality pharmaceuticals on time, to contribute to the needs of all government hospitals in the country. Interpharm and Gamma could enter the export market due to the well assured quality of our pharmaceuticals,” said Hewamallika.

He added, his late father Gamini Hewamallika, spearheaded the incorporation of Interpharm in the year 1990. Gamma succeeded the then Warner Lambert Lanka Ltd., an affiliate of the internationally reputed USA based multinational pharmaceutical company under his leadership. This acquisition then enabled Gamma to manufacture Warner Lambert and Parke Davis pharmaceutical brands under license.

Hewamallika shed light on yet another noble venture by Interpharm and Gamma. “We engaged in a magnanimous CSR project recently. We started donating money for the ‘Little Hearts Foundation’ Project, for expansion of facilities of the cardiothoracic unit at Lady Ridgeway Hospital (LRH), Colombo, to treat children with heart ailments. Interpharm and Gamma are the only pharmaceutical companies in the country to take part in this project.”

He added, “A part of the revenue of Interpharm and Gamma generated by selling pharmaceuticals will be donated to the ‘Little Hearts Foundation’ Project for five consecutive years. Hence, people who buy pharmaceuticals from Interpharm and Gamma will automatically become donators to the ‘Little Hearts Foundation’ Project. We are proud to dedicate our services towards the health and wellness of our country’s future citizens.”

Gamma and Interpharm manufacture pharmaceuticals, to comply with internationally reputed British Pharmacopoeia and United States Pharmacopeia specifications and in accordance with the Guidelines of the World Health Organization, for Current Good Manufacturing Practices. 

Oral solutions including syrups and liquid suspensions, tablets, capsules, creams and dry powder for suspension are manufactured with the use of sophisticated machineries and tested with state of the art laboratory equipments. As a part of the companies CSR initiatives, we have set up a scientifically designed Waste Water Treatment Plant, to treat the waste water from the operations at the factories of Interpharm and Gamma, through a biological process.

Interpharm was conferred the ‘Special Award For The Local Manufacture of Pharmaceuticals’ by the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation for each of the years 2011, 2012 and 2013.