Regional / State Awareness (Chhattisgarh)
Regional / State Awareness (Chhattisgarh)
This section tests the state you will work in: formation, geography, tribes, festivals, minerals and the local economy. Questions are usually one line and factual.
Core facts
- Formed on 1 November 2000 under the Madhya Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2000, becoming the 26th state. Capital Raipur; the High Court sits at Bilaspur, outside the capital.
- Five divisions - Raipur, Bilaspur, Durg, Sarguja and Bastar - with 28 districts (the number has been revised before, so confirm the current figure).
- Borders seven states: Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh.
- Forest cover is about 44% of geographical area, among the highest in India.
- Rivers: the Mahanadi rises near Sihawa in Dhamtari; Indravati, Hasdeo, Arpa, Shivnath and Kharun are the other main rivers.
- Chitrakote falls on the Indravati in Bastar, the widest waterfall in India, called the Niagara of India; Tirathgarh is on the Kanger river.
- National parks: Kanger Valley (Bastar), Indravati and Guru Ghasidas (Koriya). Achanakmar-Amarkantak is a biosphere reserve shared with Madhya Pradesh.
- Tribes: Gond is the largest; Baiga, Kamar, Birhor and Pahari Korwa are Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups.
- Folk culture: Pandwani (Teejan Bai), Panthi of the Satnami community, Raut Nacha, Karma; Bastar Dussehra and Fagun Madai are signature festivals.
- Economy: Bailadila iron ore, Korba coal and power, Bhilai Steel Plant, and rice - the state is called the rice bowl of India.
Worked example
Chitrakote waterfall lies on which river? Reasoning: place the Bastar cluster first - Chitrakote is on the Indravati, not the Mahanadi (Sihawa basin) and not the Kanger (that is Tirathgarh). Answer: Indravati.
Traps
- Assuming the High Court is in Raipur because Raipur is the capital.
- Quoting an outdated district count.
- Mixing Madhya Pradesh geography with Chhattisgarh's.