Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance — Lineage & Amendments
Visual diagrams showing how the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, No. 17 of 1929 has evolved. This is Sri Lanka's principal drug control legislation — a large, multi-chapter ordinance that has been significantly strengthened over time, notably with the introduction of the death penalty for drug trafficking in 1984 and the addition of methamphetamine in 2022.
Amendment Flowchart
Three confirmed amendments spanning nearly a century. All amendment PDFs are available from parliament.lk. A pending bill (2024/25) would extend jurisdiction to the high seas.
Legend: Orange = source available | Gray dashed = pending/not yet enacted
Source Documents
| Document | Year | Source | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, No. 17 of 1929 | 1929 | — | Source missing (original 1929 text not yet located online) |
| Consolidated text | 2024 | NDDCB | View PDF |
| Consolidated text (2024) | 2024 | lankalaw.net | View PDF |
| Amendment No. 13 of 1984 | 1984 | parliament.lk | View |
| Amendment No. 26 of 1986 | 1986 | parliament.lk | View |
| Amendment No. 41 of 2022 | 2022 | parliament.lk | View |
There may be additional historical amendments between 1929 and 1984 that have not yet been identified. The three amendments listed here are confirmed with PDFs from parliament.lk.
Governance Hierarchy
The Ordinance creates a regulatory chain from the Minister down to provincial/district enforcement. The NDDCB (established by a separate Act in 1984) is a key enforcement partner but is not created by this Ordinance.
Legend: Blue = Minister, Green = Director (regulator), Orange = Provincial/District Boards, Purple = related bodies (separate legislation)
Ordinance Structure
The Ordinance is organised into six chapters with three schedules:
Legend: Blue = general, Green = poisons, Yellow = opium, Red = dangerous drugs, Purple = cannabis, Light blue = transport
Schedules
| Schedule | Content |
|---|---|
| First Schedule | Lists poisons (Parts I, II, III) |
| Second Schedule | Opium distribution provisions |
| Third Schedule (Part I) | Dangerous drugs classified in Groups A, B, C, D, E |
| Third Schedule (Part III) | Trafficking thresholds and penalties (added 1984, updated 2022) |