General Studies for BSSC CGL
The General Studies section of BSSC CGL is a composite static-plus-current paper. It tests Bihar-specific history, geography, polity and culture alongside Indian polity, geography, economy and general awareness. Questions are mostly direct and factual, so exact names, years and constitutional figures decide the mark.
What the paper actually asks
- Bihar history: Magadha's early capitals (Rajgir/Rajagriha, later Pataliputra), Nalanda and Vikramshila universities, the 1857 revolt in Bihar led by Babu Kunwar Singh of Jagdishpur, Champaran Satyagraha (1917), Bihar Diwas on 22 March 1912 when Bihar was separated from Bengal.
- Bihar geography: the Ganga, Kosi (called the "Sorrow of Bihar"), Gandak and Bagmati; flood-prone north Bihar plains; the Chhotanagpur plateau in the south; West Champaran as the largest district by area and Patna as the most populous.
- Polity: Bihar has a bicameral legislature - Vidhan Sabha with 243 seats and Vidhan Parishad with 75 members; the Patna High Court; the Governor as constitutional head.
- Culture: Madhubani/Mithila painting, Chhath Puja, Sonepur cattle fair and Sikki grass craft.
Worked example
Question: "Which movement did Gandhi launch in Bihar in 1917?" Reason it out: the movement was against indigo planters forcing cultivators to grow indigo on three-twentieths of their land under the tinkathia system. That campaign was the Champaran Satyagraha, so the answer is Champaran, 1917.
Traps that cost marks
- Mixing Rajgir, the earlier Magadhan capital, with Pataliputra, the later imperial capital.
- Attributing the 1857 Bihar revolt to the wrong leader; Kunwar Singh is the standard answer.
- Assuming Bihar has a unicameral legislature; it is one of the few states with two houses.
- Confusing Bihar Diwas (22 March 1912) with dates of later administrative changes.