Curfew restrictions in Sri Lanka to be eased from Monday

COLOMBO — The nation-wide curfew will be eased from Monday as the month-long lock down measures reduced the spread of the coronavirus which claimed at least seven lives, the government said yesterday.

The curfew will be lifted on Monday (20) at 5:00 am and re-imposed at 8:00 pm in all the districts, except Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara, Puttalam, Kandy, Kegalle and Ampara, the Presidential Secretariat said in a statement. Thereafter a nine-hour night curfew will be in place until further notice.

The current indefinite curfew in the districts of Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara, and Puttalam will be lifted on Wednesday (22) at 5:00 am and re-imposed at 8:00 pm subject to a few exception in some of the high risk areas where the restriction will continue.

Public transport and essential services will be allowed to travel through areas that will continue to be under lockdown, the statement said adding that only one third of staff of state institutions in the Colombo district should be asked to report to places of work while others should be allowed to work from home. In other districts, government institutions should not have more than half of their staff report for work while the others should work from home.

The private sector has been asked to commence work from 10:00 am with heads of private sector companies asked to decide on scaling down the number of those required to get to their offices while encouraging more employees to work from home.

The government reiterated that carnivals, processions, religious gatherings, public meetings and cinemas remain banned as part of measures to contain the spread of the virus which has killed seven people and infected 245 people.

The number of passengers in trains and buses cannot exceed more than half of their capacity to ensure social distancing in public transport, the statement said.

The  government urged residents to bear with the restrictions until health authorities declare that there was no longer a threat of the virus spreading in the country.