COLOMBO/LUCKNOW (Reuters) – Mosques in Sri Lanka were shut indefinitely from Friday, and the island is set to impose a countrywide curfew over the weekend, as South Asian countries step up efforts to check the spread of COVID-19 cases.
FILE PHOTO: A conductor wears a protective mask as he stands next to a train at Fort railway station, as the number of people who tested positive for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the country increased, in Colombo, Sri Lanka March 17, 2020. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte/
The densely populated region of some 1.9 billion people has been less badly affected than other parts of the world, but new coronavirus cases in Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka are all accelerating, with the total across South Asia now exceeding 750. Seven people have died.
Authorities worry that these countries could be especially at risk, should the virus begin to spread locally, due to poor health faciliti