New SLS Rule for Imported Tyres From Jan 2027 — Safety Check or Local Cartel Protection?

From 1 January 2027, imported passenger car and three-wheeler tyres must clear mandatory SLS testing, under a gazette issued this October that updates rules first brought in back in 2024. Government's line is simple: keep substandard and repackaged tyres off the road. But opposition MPs have warned it could hand a big advantage to the one or two local manufacturers who actually make tyres here, especially since Sri Lanka doesn't even run its own government testing lab for this yet. The numbers explain the worry: of 18 registered tyre manufacturers in the country, only 8 actually produce new tyres, and local output barely covers half of installed capacity. Supporters say any country serious about stopping fake or worn "new" tyres from being repackaged and sold needs exactly this kind of check at the border. Critics say if testing gets outsourced, delayed, or bottlenecked, importers eat the cost and the wait, and prices on popular imported brands jump before anyone sees a safety benefit. If you've bought tyres recently, local or imported, did the quality match what you paid, or did you get stuck with something that wore out way too fast? මේ නීතිය ආරක්ෂාවටද, නැත්නම් දේශීය සමාගම්වලට වාසියක්ද?