General Awareness and Current Affairs
What this domain tests
The General Awareness and Current Affairs section checks whether you can place Odisha and India in context: state history, geography, culture, polity, welfare schemes, and events reported in the months before the exam. A large share of questions has an Odisha focus, so state-specific facts repay revision more than scattered world trivia.
Odisha static anchors
- Odisha became a separate province on 1 April 1936 (Utkal Divas); Odia was declared a classical language in 2014.
- The state has 30 districts and its capital is Bhubaneswar. State animal: sambar; state bird: Indian roller (neelakantha); state flower: ashoka; state tree: banyan.
- Rivers: Mahanadi (Hirakud Dam), Brahmani, Baitarani, Subarnarekha, Rushikulya, Tel.
- Chilika is Asia's largest brackish-water lagoon and home to Irrawaddy dolphins; Similipal is a tiger reserve and biosphere reserve; Bhitarkanika is known for mangroves and saltwater crocodiles.
- Heritage: Kalinga war (261 BCE), Kharavela's Hathigumpha inscription, Lingaraj temple, Puri Jagannath temple, Konark Sun Temple (UNESCO World Heritage, 1984).
- Arts: Odissi, Gotipua, Mayurbhanj Chhau, Pattachitra, Sambalpuri bandha, Pipili applique work.
Current affairs
Track state schemes (KALIA, Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana, Mission Shakti, Mo School, 5T, Jaga Mission), the national budget and flagship missions, GI tags, ISRO missions, sports, and awards. Keep a month-wise notebook with one line per event.
Worked example
Question: Which pair is correctly matched? (a) Chilika–Irrawaddy dolphin (b) Similipal–saltwater crocodile. The first is correct; the second is wrong because the crocodile association belongs to Bhitarkanika. Matching questions usually contain one anchor you know with certainty; eliminate options from that anchor.
Traps
Do not guess dates; distinguish first in Odisha from first in India; schemes are renamed or merged, so learn the current name; do not mix up Odisha's Jnanpith winners.