Monthly News Recap for Legal Competitive Exams – May 2023!

Are you preparing for competitive legal exams?

Most competitive legal exams require awareness of current affairs in the legal field and beyond.

To help your preparation journey, Team YLCC has prepared an overview of all the important developments that have taken place in May 2023.

Happy Reading!

International

1. Ecuador, Nigeria and Panama tap India for Generic medicine scheme.
2. India-Uae Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Cepa) completed one year.
3. NASA scientists successfully extracted oxygen from simulated lunar soil.
4. The UN holds crucial Afghanistan talks in Qatar, without the Taliban.
5. Uzbekistan holds a referendum on a new Constitution that puts human rights at forefront.
6. European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has withdrawn recognition of six Clearing Corporation in India.
7. WMO stated that the world should prepare for El-Nino.
8. World Press Freedom Index 2023- India ranked 161^st
9. Ajay Banga, appointed as World bank President.
10. Bhutan’s firms plans to raise $500m to launch carbon-free mining centres using hydropower.
11. Kaladan Project: India flags off shipment for Sittwe Port in Myanmar.
12. On the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-South Korea bilateral relations, both sides signed the Washington Declaration.
13. WHO declared an end to COVID-19 as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
14. Arab league members have readmitted Syria whose membership was suspended in 2011.
15. Taliban agreed with China and Pakistan to extend CPEC, a part of Belt and Road initiative (BRI), into Afghanistan. 
16. Most Asia-Pacific countries Ill-Prepared for Natural Disasters: United Nations Economic And Social Commission For Asia And The Pacific (Escap) Report
17. India extends a $1 Billion credit line for Sri Lanka by a year.
18. James Webb Space Telescope (Jwst) spots new belts of asteroids near star fomalhaut.
19. Human rights group accused Myanmar’s military of using thermobaric bomb.
20. WHO has ended the global health emergency for mpox.
21. 6th International Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) held in Bangladesh.
22. SSCO members adopt India’s proposal for Digital Public Infrastructure.
23. Cyclone Mocha, classified as “Super Cyclone’, made landfall along the Myanmar coast.
24. Team of space scientists has discovered 62 new moons around Saturn. 
25. G7 summit held in Hiroshima, Japan.
26. PM attended the Forum for India Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) summit in Papua New Guinea.
27. Iran launched the fourth generation of its liquid-fuelled of Khorramshahr ballistic missile, named Kheibar.
28. According to the WMO, global average temperature rise may exceed the 1.5° C target much earlier than 2100.
29. Somalia to introduce direct universal suffrage in 2024.

National

1. Government to bring a policy to avoid criminal prosecution for consumption of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.
2. The Ministry of Civil Aviation, has announced that India will start participating in International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) and Long-Term Aspirational Goals (LTAG) from 2027.
3. The Ministry of Finance, has launched scheme Vivad se Vishwas, for providing financial relief to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) for COVID-19 period.
4. Reserve Bank of India’s total gold reserves has reached a new high to around 800 tonnes. 
5. The Indian Astronomical Observatory captured the phenomenon of Northern Lights in Ladakh for the first time.
6. India will release manual for organ donation, transplantation soon.
7. Clashes were reported in Manipur, over grant of ST status to the Meitei Community- Centre invoked Article 355  to ensure state security.
8. Legendary mridangam artiste Karaikudi R Rani passed away.
9. APY, PMJJBY, PMSBY completes eight years of providing social security net.
10. 5 more cheetahs will be released into the wild at Kuno National Park.
11. The Geological Survey of India finds  lithium reserves in Rajasthan.
12. Archaeological Survey of India has sought approval from Centre, to declare the Tungnath temple as a monument of national importance.
13. Union Ministry Of Women And Child Development, launched the Poshan Bhi, Padhai Bhi (PBPB) Scheme.
14. Bhopal becomes first Indian city to track progress towards meeting SDSGs.
15. 2,500 kg drugs worth Rs 12,000 cr seized by Narcotic Control Bureau and Indian Navy.
16. Ravneet Kaur has become the first woman chairperson of CCI.
17. RBI to withdraw Rs 2,000 notes from circulation.
18. Saantiniketan, the home of Nobel laureate Rabindra Nath Tagore, has been recommended for inclusion in UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
19. Kerala has become the first full ‘e-governed state’ in India.
20. ISRO launches next-generation Navigational Satellite NVS – 01

Legal

1. SC rules it can directly grant divorce to couples under Article 142.
2. SC upholds section 327(7) of Companies Act 2013, which holds that workers’ dues will not get preferential payment in the event a company undergoes liquidation as per provisions of IBC, 2016.
3. European Parliament reached a preliminary deal to bring general-purpose AI systems like OpenAI’s chatbot ChatGPT under ambit of regulation
4. Ministry Of Finance notified changes to The Prevention Of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002- New rule has brought in practicing Chartered Accountants, Company Secretaries, and Cost and Works Accountants under the ambit of PMLA.
5. In the backdrop of ongoing violence in Manipur, SC said that the HC does not have power to direct the State Government to recommend a tribe for ST List.
6. Punjab has become the first state to implement the ‘right to walk’.
7. The Constitution Bench in Shiv Sena case ruled that power to appoint a whip and a leader rests with the “political party” and not the “legislature party”.
8. The SC has issued notice seeking the compliance of the Government with respect to its judgment in Anuradha Bhasin case.
9. SC held that the Delhi Government has power over all services except police, land, public order.
10. Allahabad HC ordered carbon dating of a structure at a disputed site in Varanasi.
11. SC issued a slew of directions to ensure its effective implementation of POSH Act, 2013. 
12. SCt transferred to Kerala HC the responsibility of monitoring the measures taken by the State for victims of endosulfan contamination.
13. SC held that the government cannot claim immunity from application of law to a contract merely because one of the parties to it is the President.
14. DISTRICT JUDICIARY’S INDEPENDENCE PART OF BASIC STRUCTURE, SAYS SUPREME COURT (SC)- SC, while pronouncing judgment in All India Judges Association v. Union of India case, highlighted district judiciary’s independence part of basic structure.
15. Government of National Capital Territory Of Delhi (Amendment) Ordinance, 2023 issued by Central Government.

YLCC would like to thank Udita Miyan for her valuable insights into this article!