Sri Lankan authorities have lifted a ban on poultry imports, allowing local farmers to import one-day- old chicks, Daily Mirror reported Wednesday,

"As the ban on import of day-old chicks has been lifted this year, local farmers can now import chicks from countries free of bird flu like India, France and Britain," a spokesperson for the All Island Poultry Association said.

Sri Lanka imposed a ban on imported chicks in October 2005 amid fears of a bird flu pandemic which has killed more than 70 people in Asia since 2003.

Source: Xinhua