Current Affairs in Short: 30 July 2020

Delhi reduces VAT on diesel to 16.75 percent 

• The Delhi government has reduced the Value Added Tax (VAT) on diesel to 16.75 percent from 30 percent. This was decided during a Delhi cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on July 30, 2020.  The move will reduce the price of diesel in Delhi from Rs 82 to Rs 73.64, a reduction of Rs 8.36 per litre.
• Besides this, the Delhi CM announced that the state government is received a good response on the job portal that was announced a few days back. Roughly around 7,577 companies have registered, 2,04,785 jobs have been advertised and 3,22,865 people have applied for jobs on the portal. 
• The Delhi government has in the past week taken many steps to bolster the economy of the state including allowing street vendors to resume their work and businessmen to open their establishments while maintaining the safety protocols of COVID-19 including wearing of masks and maintaining social distancing. 

Rajasthan Governor orders to convene assembly session from August 14

• Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra issue an order on July 29, 2020 to convene the assembly session from August 14, amid ongoing political crisis in the state due to differences in the ruling Congress government. 
• The Governor directed that all necessary measures should be followed while conducting the assembly session in line with the COVID safety guidelines issued by the Health Ministry. 
• The Governor has issued the order after repeated requests from Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. The Rajasthan government is currently in crisis after differences arose between the Chief Minister and former deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot. 

UK extends coronavirus quarantine period from 7 to 10 days

• The United Kingdom has extended coronavirus quarantine period from 7 to 10 days for those who test positive for COVID or display some obvious symptoms, in line with the guidelines issued by WHO. 
• The Chief Medical Officer for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales said in a statement that in symptomatic people, COVID-19 is most infectious just before, and for the first few days after symptoms begin. Hence, it is very important for symptomatic people to self-isolate and get their tests done, which will allow contact tracing. 
• The move follows concerns of a second wave of coronavirus across Europe. Till now, those displaying symptoms of the virus such as fever, continuous cough or loss of smell or taste were asked to self-isolate for seven days. 

Pakistani cricketer Umar Akmal's ban reduced to 18 months

• Pakistani cricketer, Umar Akmal's ban has been halved to 18 months and will run from February 2020 to August 2021. The cricketer stated that he will appeal for more reprieve.
• The 30-year-old's sentence was reduced by independent adjudicator Faqir Mohammad Khokhar on “compassionate” grounds. The batsman was initially slapped with a three-year ban after the PCB charged him for two breaches of Article 2.4.4 of its Anti-Corruption Code in two unrelated incidents on March 17. The incidents were related to failing to report corrupt approaches. 
• However, the cricketer is not satisfied with the reprieve and will fight for a complete lifting of the suspension. He expressed dissatisfaction with the ruling on his appeal.

1 in 3 children worldwide threatened by high lead levels in blood: Study 

• According to a new study, one in three children worldwide are threatened by unacceptably high lead levels in the blood. One of the major contributors to lead poisoning is an increase in the recycling of lead in automotive batteries to satisfy the increasing usage of cars and trucks, especially in the developing world, the study said. 
• The study notes that lead recycling is often done haphazardly in poor and middle-income countries where industrial pollution safeguards are poorly enforced or nonexistent.
• Lead can be found almost everywhere, in dust and fumes from fires and smelters, vehicle batteries, old water pipes, old peeling paint, electronic junkyards, and even cosmetics and lead-infused spices. 
• This represents a huge risk to the mental and physical development of a generation of children, warns the study that released on July 29, 2020. The study also found that almost 1 million adults a year die prematurely because of lead exposure.