India to train about 100,000 COVID-19 frontline warriors: PM Modi

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched six crash course programmes to train and up-skill around 100,000 frontline workers across the country to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking on the occasion, PM Modi urged people to remain cautious, stressing that the virus is "still amongst us" and the possibility of it mutating is also there. With Sri Lanka deciding to proceed with the China-backed Colombo Port City project, India on Thursday said that it is closely following the development. India's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson in a weekly press briefing said that India hopes that Sri Lanka remains mindful of bilateral ties and security in the maritime domain. Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly, Shehbaz Sharif, on Thursday lashed out at Prime Minister Imran Khan-led government for failing to fulfill its promises of reducing poverty and creating millions of jobs. He said it had ruined the country due to a 'storm of inflation' and termed the annual budget as fake. Locals in Pakistan's largest city Karachi continue to face problems due to prolonged power outages stretching up to 12 hours almost every day. President of Jamaat-e-Islami party's Karachi chapter held a press conference recently and blamed the government for negligence in addressing the issue.