<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka's nationwide lockdown was lifted Sunday after a selective curfew a month ago was reimposed during a surge in coronavirus infections, the country's president said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The island nation imposed the lockdown on March 20 and lifted it gradually over the past two months, although a nighttime curfew remained in place.</p>.<p class="bodytext">It reintroduced tighter restrictions in late May and early June to curb large gatherings for the funeral of a popular government minister and for a religious festival.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/coronavirus-news-live-updates-india-deaths-covid-19-tally-maharashtra-karnataka-delhi-mumbai-bengaluru-icmr-worldometer-info-851629.html">Follow latest updates on the Covid-19 pandemic here</a></strong></p>.<p class="bodytext">"The curfew has completely been lifted effective from today," President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's office said in a statement.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Health officials said new infections reported since April 30 were from Sri Lankans stranded in the Middle East who were brought home on special flights and quarantined.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A cluster in a navy camp was controlled with the facility still in lock down, they said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"There has been no community spread of the virus and the infections at the Welisara navy camp are now contained," a health official told AFP.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Air and sea borders remained closed, with international flights suspended.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Authorities plan to reopen Sri Lanka's borders on August 1, but the date could be reviewed due to the imported cases, the official added.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka will also hold its parliamentary elections at the start of August after they were postponed due to the pandemic.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Around 2,000 infections including 11 deaths have been recorded in the South Asian nation so far, according to government figures.</p>
<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka's nationwide lockdown was lifted Sunday after a selective curfew a month ago was reimposed during a surge in coronavirus infections, the country's president said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The island nation imposed the lockdown on March 20 and lifted it gradually over the past two months, although a nighttime curfew remained in place.</p>.<p class="bodytext">It reintroduced tighter restrictions in late May and early June to curb large gatherings for the funeral of a popular government minister and for a religious festival.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/coronavirus-news-live-updates-india-deaths-covid-19-tally-maharashtra-karnataka-delhi-mumbai-bengaluru-icmr-worldometer-info-851629.html">Follow latest updates on the Covid-19 pandemic here</a></strong></p>.<p class="bodytext">"The curfew has completely been lifted effective from today," President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's office said in a statement.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Health officials said new infections reported since April 30 were from Sri Lankans stranded in the Middle East who were brought home on special flights and quarantined.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A cluster in a navy camp was controlled with the facility still in lock down, they said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"There has been no community spread of the virus and the infections at the Welisara navy camp are now contained," a health official told AFP.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Air and sea borders remained closed, with international flights suspended.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Authorities plan to reopen Sri Lanka's borders on August 1, but the date could be reviewed due to the imported cases, the official added.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka will also hold its parliamentary elections at the start of August after they were postponed due to the pandemic.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Around 2,000 infections including 11 deaths have been recorded in the South Asian nation so far, according to government figures.</p>