Bihar-Specific General Knowledge and Current Affairs
Bihar-specific General Knowledge carries real weight in the BPSC screening test because the Commission expects an officer to know the state's history, geography, institutions, culture and current schemes. Questions are factual and often tied to a district, a river, a dynasty or a recent state programme.
History anchors
Magadha under Bimbisara and Ajatashatru; Pataliputra under the Mauryas and Guptas; Nalanda Mahavihara, associated with Kumaragupta I, and Vikramshila, founded by Dharmapala of the Pala line; Sher Shah Suri of Sasaram; Kunwar Singh of Jagdishpur in 1857; the Champaran Satyagraha of 1917; Rajendra Prasad of Zeradei, first President of India; Jayaprakash Narayan; and Shri Krishna Singh, Bihar's first Chief Minister.
Geography
Bihar has 38 districts in 9 divisions with Patna as capital. The Ganga is the main axis, joined by the Kosi, called the sorrow of Bihar for its shifting course and floods, the Gandak, the Son, the Bagmati and the Punpun. North Bihar is flood-prone alluvium; the south touches the Chhotanagpur plateau, where the Someshwar range is the highest ground.
Economy and culture
Agriculture dominates, with Bihar the leading producer of makhana and litchi, and Bhagalpur silk and Madhubani painting as signature crafts. Chhath, the Sonepur cattle fair, Bodh Gaya, Patna Sahib and the revived Nalanda University (2014) are frequent question sources.
Worked example
Why is Bihar Diwas observed on 22 March? Because on 22 March 1912 Bihar was separated from Bengal and constituted as a province, with Patna as its capital.
Traps
Separating 1912, 1936 (Orissa) and 2000 (Jharkhand); confusing Nalanda's Gupta patronage with Vikramshila's Pala foundation.