The Problems with Westphalian Nation-State System

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We all associate ourselves with various identities such as Indians, Chinese, Pakistani, Americans, Canadians, French, British and much more. Why do you think we all associate with all these more? Are there any other identities which people associate with?  The identities which I mentioned before are relatively new compared to other identities such as religion, language, caste, and various other identities. It is not to say that people never had such feelings towards nations or the state. But the idea of loyalty and love for the motherland was very important which offset various other identities. The question we are arriving at is what is the motherland, who made and how it formed.  What we refer to today as a Nation or Country refers to what we know in political science as a Nation-State. Today almost all the countries we know are categorised Nation-States and some even as State-Nations. International Relations and Political Science suggest that states are the most important a...

Newscapsule for the Month of May 2023

Following are the top news for the month.  If you wish to follow and get notifications of future articles, you can signup using the email on the left sidebar. 


Article of the month 

Kerala 

  • Five people were slapped Rs 1000 fine each for sticking posters on Vande Bharat Express. 
  • Thrissur Pooram fireworks light up the sky; Messi featured in 'Kudamattam'.
  • CBI ready to take up Bar Bribery Case.
  • Stone was thrown at Vande Bharat in Kerala within a week of the inaugural run; cracks on a window.
  • Pinarayi hands over keys to 20,073 houses; contracts with 41,439 signed.
  • Gangster Anil Dujana killed in UP police encounter, cops said he 'fired at team'.
  • Congress party has been using the Kerala story to protest the screening of the film. 
  • Kerala governor Arif Mohammed Khan visits Guruvayur temple and offers bananas as ‘thulabharam’.
  • Doctor Vandana was stabbed to death by a man in custody creating uproar for the safety of doctors. 
  • Kerala passes ordinance to safeguard doctors. 
  • Drug use among school students: Attendance to be counted in evenings too.
  • Kerala SSLC and +2 results released.
  • Bison attacks: Kerala govt announces compensation to kin of deceased; 'Shoot order' in Erumeli.
  • Anganawadi Praveshnolosavam was held. 
  • Multiple warehouses of Kerala Medical Corporation across the state catch fire. 
  • Milma’s Malabar regional union produces the best quality milk in the country.
  • Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar arrives in Kerala for a two-day visit.
  • CPI(M) MLA Jenish faces flak for visiting Guruvayur temple and following rituals; the legislator justifies by saying he was there only to attend a friend’s wedding. 
  • Bypoll election results out. 
  • Kerala govt bans saffron decorations at Vellayani Bhadrakali temple citing 'law and order' reasons.
  • Elephant Arikomban crosses over to Tamil Nadu. 

India 


  • India tries to solve its trade imbalance with Russia. 
  • Delhi becomes the world's second-largest city. 
  • Mumbai is the 9th largest city in the world. 
  • Karnataka Elections manifestos between parties were extremely competitive. 
  • Kerala Story movie released amidst all the controversy in the country. 
  • Adv. Sukkur offers Rs 11 lakhs for proof of 32 women who converted and joined IS. 
  • Gujarat HC refuses to stay in Rahul Gandhi's Surat Court case.
  • Meithis vs Kukis violence is overblown in Manipur killing multiple people and displacement of population. People demand Presidential rule. 
  • Sharad Pawar decides to step down as NCP president; NCP chief Pawar agreed to rethink his resignation amid protest.
  • ABVP screens Kerala Story in JNU. Three states- UP, MP and Uttarakhand declare it tax-free. West Bengal banned the film. 
  • PM's security helicopter is stuck in the helipad in Raichur, and a lifting operation is underway.
  • Delhi Court issues summons to BBC in Modi Documentary case. 
  • Sale of meat banned in Bengaluru on Buddha Purnima.
  • Congress party takes control of Shimla Municipal Corporation after a very long time. 
  • PM Modi's Mega Roadshow in Bengaluru was a Two-Day Event. 
  • PM Cites 'The Kerala Story', Accuses Congress Of Backing Terror Mindset.
  • Manipur violence: State government not doing enough, claims BJP MLA.
  • Ex-Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal passed away. 
  • The school asks Rs 100 from students who missed Mann ki Baat.
  • Rajnikanth praises Ex Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu.
  • BJP functionary shot dead while waiting for wife in SUV in Gujarat. 
  • Amit Shah gets notice for his comments in Karnataka. 
  • Sachin Pilot vs Gehlot war intensifies in Rajasthan. 
  • A female Cheetah Dalksha dies in the forest that was newly brought from Zambia followed by three cubs. 
  • The dairy minister dropped, and TRB Rajaa was inducted into the Stalin-led council of ministers.
  • BJP wins 8 seats, Congress 4, independents 2 in urban body bypolls in Rajasthan.
  • Violent incidents were reported in at least 3 places during the Karnataka Assembly elections. 
  • CM Yogi Adityanath meets with The Kerala Story team in Lucknow.
  • Congress wins the Karnataka Elections 2023 with 135 out of 224 seats. 
  • Who will be the CM becomes a new big row in the state? 
  • DGCA fines Air India Rs 30 lakh, pilot's license suspended for 3 months. From now on It will be
  • Congress loses its stronghold of Jalandhar after 30 years to AAP. 
  • Shivakumar maintains a 'winning streak' by securing the Kanakapura seat for the eighth straight time.
  • BJP sweeps UP municipal elections, CM Yogi Adityanath celebrates victory.
  • Parineeti Chopra and Raghav Chadha are now officially engaged.
  • CBSE announces Class 10 and 12 board exam results.
  • Siddaramiah is the new CM of Karnataka with D K Sivakumar as his Deputy. 
  • Kiren Rijiju Shifted Out Of Law Ministry, Arjun Ram Meghwal Replaces Him. 
  • IAS Tina Dabi Orders Eviction of Pak Hindu Migrants From Govt Land in Jaisalmer.
  • 10 Kuki MLAs including 7 from BJP demand 'separate administration' under Indian Constitution. 
  • Supreme Court Upholds Tamil Nadu Law Allowing Bull-Taming Sport `Jallikattu`.
  • BJP moves to disqualify Padmaja for backing UDF. 
  • PM Modi inaugurated the new Parliament building on May 28 and used Senghol as a symbol of power. 
  • India will do whatever is possible to find a solution to the Ukraine conflict: PM Modi to Zelenskyy.
  • Karanataka ends the zero-Traffic rule.
  • Andhra Pradesh begins freeing 2 lakh acres of ‘dotted lands’.
  • 'Soul of democracy sucked out': 19 Oppn parties unite, to skip Parliament launch.
  • Wrestlers Detained Trying To March To New Parliament, Protest Site Cleared. 
  • Erdogan wins the Presidential Elections
  • ‘Modi is the boss’: Australian leader gives India’s prime minister a rock star welcome.
  • Congress wiped out of West Bengal assembly again as lone MLA joins Trinamool.
  • Wrestlers postpone a plan to immerse medals in river Ganga as Tikait intervenes, giving a five-day ultimatum. 
  • 'PM Modi would start explaining to God how the universe works': Rahul Gandhi in US.
World/International


  • Violence in South Sudan proliferates.
  • Thai opposition takes on the kingdom’s conservative cliques in a challenge to the military’s power
  • Sweden’s Loreen wins the historic second Eurovision, after the emotional show in Britain that celebrated Ukraine. 
  • Bank of England hikes interest rates for 12th time in battle with inflation
  • A scorpion bites a woman on board an Air India flight.
  • As Ukraine prepares a counteroffensive, Russia appears in disarray
  • France thanks India for evacuating embassy staffers from Sudan
  • Russian Forces under the Wagner Group claim control over Bakhmut. 
  • Building attacked using a drone in Moscow.
  • Russia holds its biggest ever air-raid on Kyiv.
  • Russia Accuses Ukraine of attempted drone attack on Kremlin
  • One in 5 young people in Chinese cities are out of work. Beijing wants them to work in the fields
  • Title 24 ended in the USA. More migrants are expected. 
  • Officer Tou Thao who held back the crowd during George Floyd’s murder convicted of aiding and abetting manslaughter
  • Over 130 were arrested in anti-mafia raids across multiple European countries.
  • Syria is back in the Arab League.
  • Teen kills 9 people at school in Serbia's first mass shooting in 10 years. 
  • The boy opened fire at a school in Serbia's capital Wednesday, killing nine people. Police said the shooter opened fire with his father's gun.
  • Shooting rocks the city of Atlanta. 
  • Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meet held in Goa. 
  • India's Operation Kaveri ends.
  • EU in Israel cancels Europe Day event over Ben-Gvir
  • Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan arrested. Pakistan sees widespread violence, especially on military targets. 
  • Imran Khan supporters storm Pakistan Army HQ, Mianwali air base, ISI HQ,  Lahore corps commander's house, Quetta, Karachi, Faisalabad. Army vows to take back the country after protests.
  • George Santos faces trial amidst Federal charges. 
  • Germany goes into recession. 
  • Israeli Defence Forces apologise for the death of Al Jazeera journalist. 
  • Pak Supreme Court Pulls Up NAB, Asks It to Produce Former PM.
  • G7 Meet held in Japan. India and Ukraine attend as invitees. 
  • India holds G20 meet in Kashmir which was boycotted by China, Saudi, Egypt, Turkey and Oman.
  • Turkish elections:- Erdogan's alliance captures Parliament and also pushes the Presidential election to run off. 
  • Kerala Story film faces set back in the UK. 
  • FDA relaxes blood donation rules for gay and bisexual men.
  • Ukraine imposes sanctions on Iran.
  • Rare protests were seen in China during the demolition of a mosque. 
  • SCOTUS declines to intervene in Contraceptives. 
  • Kiren Rijiju Shifted Out Of Law Ministry, Arjun Ram Meghwal Replaces Him 
  • Over 800 Civilians Killed as Fighting Between Army and RSF Enters 2nd Month
  • US Dept of State speaks on PM Modi's upcoming visit, says 'Partnership with India one of the most consequential relations.
  • Disney scraps plans for new Florida campus, mass employee relocation amid DeSantis feud.
  • 1-year-old boy accidentally shot by 4-year-old brother in Texas, police say
  • Australian parliament screen PM Modi's BBC Documentary.    
  • US court clears Tahawwur Rana’s extradition to India: Looking at other key culprits in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and where they are right now
  • SC lifts West Bengal govt's ban, asks Tamil Nadu to provide security to moviegoers.
  • A Moscow court has ordered the arrest of prominent film producer Alexander Rodnyansky and theatre director Ivan Vyrypaev for “spreading false information” about the Russian army.
  • US and Taiwan draw closer with a new trade pact opposed by China.
  • Putin's minister dies on Plane. 
  • The President of Belarus was hospitalised after his meeting with Lukashenko.
  • Biden pulls out of Quad summit due to meeting with Kevin McCarthy.
  • Adani stock investors richer by Rs 1.8 lakh crore in 3 days.
  • Russian forces held an attack on the Belgorod border city. 
  • Jan-6 rioter put in 45-year prison sentance. 
  • Ron DeSantis decides to run for the 2024 elections followed by Chris Christie and Mike Pence. 
  • Mexican president urges Hispanics in the US not to vote for Ron DeSantis.
  • Lula turns down Putin's invitation to attend an economic forum in Russia. 
  • Pakistan Army has put the lid on Imran’s revolt & now wants a million acres of land in Cholistan.
  • Iowa governor signs bill rolling back child labour protections into law.
  • Oleksiy Danilov interview: Ukraine counter-offensive 'ready to begin'.
  • Erdogan wins Turkey's election in a runoff. 
  • NATO launches operation in the Artic Sea to protect Finland. 
  • The US House of Representatives passed the bill to raise the debt ceiling. 
  • Kosovo's prime minister says he will not surrender the country to Serbian ‘fascist militia’ after clashes in the north.

Technology



  • 100 episode of PM Modi’s Mann ki Baat completed.
  • Taller than the Eiffel Tower, India constructs the world’s highest railway bridge in Kashmir. 
  • Kochi to use CNG to manage its waste. 
  • Microsoft releases its own AI-powered Bing search engine. 
  • Pakistan cuts internet in the country after protests. 
  • The first baby with three DNAs was born in the UK through an IVF procedure. 
  • Elon Musk Says He Has a New C.E.O. for Twitter. 
  • DGCA fines Air India Rs 30 lakh, pilot's license suspended for 3 months.
  • Kerala Water Metro reaches new records. 
  • SCOTUS rules, Twitter is not liable for ISIS content. 
  • EU slapped a record €1.2B fine on Meta.
  • Reliance Jio adds 30.5 lakh mobile users in March; Vi loses 12 lakh users.
  • India will unveil 18 new petaFLOP supercomputers for weather forecasting in 2023. 
  • State-run ANERT launches ambitious project to make Trivandrum. largest solar city in India. 
  • Abu Dhabi Introduces First 100% Electric Waste Truck in the UAE.
Business and Finance


  • KSRTC-SWIFT to employ female drivers to run electric buses in Trivandrum.
  • Federal Bank marathon held in Kochi. 
  • 300 ‘Take A Break’ public toilet complexes inaugurated in Kerala. 
  • Kochi Water Metro crosses the 10,000 mark in the number of daily commuters. 
  • Fed Raises its exchange rate. 
  • Made in Kerala carpet weaves magic at Met Gala.
  • CNN holds Trump Town Hall; faces flak for the same. 
  • Rate hikes have contributed to a banking crisis and economic slowdown this year.
  • Only Shenoys Theatre in Kochi screened the Kerala Story film. Others pull out. 
  • The economy added 253,000 jobs in April amid high-interest rates, a credit crunch, a jobs report shows. Unemployment fell to 3.4%.
  • Big Boss 7th season is to be out soon claims Kamal Hassan. 
  • Kerala KSEB decided to hike the power tariff in the state. 
  • Kerala attends a business summit in UAE. 
  • Kerala Files film hits the theatres. 
  • 2018 becomes the most highly-grossed Malayalam movie ever with more than 150 Cr Box office. 
  • World Bank team meets Kerala CM; expresses interest in state's carbon neutral initiatives.
  • Russia reaches a record deficit amidst war. 
  • Ukraine grain deal to be extended for 2 months.
  • Kerala AI camera issue enters into multiple controversies. 
  • US and Taiwan draw closer with a new trade pact opposed by China. 
  • The-Kerala-Story-box-office-Second-Hindi-film-to-enter-Rs-200-crore-club-in-2023.
  • Pakistan and Iran inaugurate the border market.
  • Adani stock investors richer by Rs 1.8 lakh crore in 3 days. 

Sports 

  • Lionel Messi exits PSG club.
  • Chennai Super Kings won their 5th IPL trophy amidst rain delaying the final match.
  • Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the world's highest-paid athlete after Al Nassr's move.

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