Static GK for National Exams

1. States and UTs: Capitals, Formation, Dances and Festivals

India has 28 states and 8 Union Territories. Exams ask about capitals, the day a state was formed, and which dance or festival belongs to which state. These facts do not change when governments change, so they are worth learning well.

Capitals that are often asked

• North-East: Arunachal Pradesh - Itanagar, Assam - Dispur, Manipur - Imphal, Meghalaya - Shillong, Mizoram - Aizawl, Nagaland - Kohima, Sikkim - Gangtok, Tripura - Agartala.
• Chandigarh is the capital of both Punjab and Haryana, and is itself a Union Territory.
• Some states have two capitals: Himachal Pradesh (Shimla, winter capital Dharamshala), Uttarakhand (Dehradun, summer capital Gairsain), Maharashtra (Mumbai, winter capital Nagpur).
• Jammu and Kashmir UT has Srinagar (summer) and Jammu (winter). Ladakh's administrative centre is Leh.
• Other common ones: Chhattisgarh - Raipur, Jharkhand - Ranchi, Odisha - Bhubaneswar, Gujarat - Gandhinagar, Telangana - Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh - Amaravati (capital city under development).
• UTs with their own elected legislature: Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu and Kashmir. The other five UTs are run directly by an Administrator or Lt Governor.

When states and UTs were formed

• Gujarat and Maharashtra: 1 May 1960 (split from Bombay State). Nagaland: 1 December 1963. Haryana: 1 November 1966 (from Punjab).
• Himachal Pradesh became a state on 25 January 1971. Manipur, Tripura and Meghalaya became states on 21 January 1972.
• Sikkim joined India as the 22nd state on 16 May 1975. Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh became states on 20 February 1987; Goa on 30 May 1987.
• Three new states in November 2000: Chhattisgarh (1 Nov), Uttarakhand (9 Nov) and Jharkhand (15 Nov).
• Telangana was formed on 2 June 2014, the youngest state.
• On 31 October 2019 Jammu and Kashmir state was split into two UTs (J&K and Ladakh). On 26 January 2020 Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu were merged into one UT.

Classical and folk dances

• The Sangeet Natak Akademi recognises 8 classical dances: Bharatanatyam (Tamil Nadu), Kathak (North India, mainly Uttar Pradesh), Kathakali and Mohiniyattam (Kerala).
• The other four: Kuchipudi (Andhra Pradesh), Odissi (Odisha), Manipuri (Manipur) and Sattriya (Assam, added in 2000). Some Ministry of Culture lists also include Chhau.
• Folk dances of the north and west: Bhangra and Giddha (Punjab), Ghoomar and Kalbelia (Rajasthan), Garba and Dandiya (Gujarat), Lavani (Maharashtra), Rouf (Kashmir), Nati (Himachal Pradesh).
• Folk dances of the east and north-east: Bihu (Assam), Chhau (Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal), Cheraw or bamboo dance (Mizoram), Hojagiri (Tripura), Raut Nacha (Chhattisgarh).
• Folk and ritual forms of the south: Yakshagana and Dollu Kunitha (Karnataka), Theyyam (Kerala), Karakattam (Tamil Nadu), Fugdi (Goa).

Festivals by state

• Harvest festivals: Pongal (Tamil Nadu), Onam (Kerala), Bihu (Assam), Lohri (Punjab), Nuakhai (Odisha), Wangala (Meghalaya).
• Hornbill Festival (Nagaland, 1-10 December) is called the 'festival of festivals'. Sangai Festival is held in Manipur.
• Hemis Festival and Losar are Buddhist festivals of Ladakh; Losar is also celebrated in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
• Chhath Puja (Bihar), Durga Puja (West Bengal), Ganesh Chaturthi (Maharashtra), Bathukamma (Telangana).
• Pushkar Camel Fair is held in Rajasthan. Ugadi is the new year in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

💡 Group facts by date: 1960 (Gujarat, Maharashtra), 1972 (Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya), 1987 (Mizoram, Arunachal, Goa), 2000 (Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand). Four dates answer most formation questions.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

2. National Symbols, Important Days, Firsts and Superlatives

Questions on national symbols and important days are easy marks if you remember them exactly. This lesson also lists famous 'firsts' and the longest, highest and largest things in India.

National symbols

• National flag: three colours in the ratio 3:2 (length to width), with a navy-blue Ashoka Chakra of 24 spokes. It was adopted on 22 July 1947; Pingali Venkayya is credited with the design.
• National emblem: taken from the Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath, adopted on 26 January 1950. The motto 'Satyameva Jayate' comes from the Mundaka Upanishad.
• National anthem 'Jana Gana Mana' by Rabindranath Tagore (adopted 24 January 1950, about 52 seconds). National song 'Vande Mataram' by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, from the novel Anandamath.
• National animal: tiger. National heritage animal: elephant. National bird: peacock. National aquatic animal: Gangetic river dolphin. National river: Ganga.
• National flower: lotus. National tree: banyan. National fruit: mango. The National Calendar is the Saka calendar, adopted on 22 March 1957.
• The rupee symbol (₹) was designed by D. Udaya Kumar and adopted in 2010. India has no officially declared national game.

Important days (fixed dates)

• January: 12 National Youth Day (Swami Vivekananda), 15 Army Day, 24 National Girl Child Day, 25 National Voters' Day, 30 Martyrs' Day.
• 28 February National Science Day (Raman Effect, 1928). 8 March International Women's Day. 22 March World Water Day. 7 April World Health Day. 22 April Earth Day.
• 11 May National Technology Day (Pokhran-II, 1998). 5 June World Environment Day. 21 June International Day of Yoga. 1 July National Doctors' Day (Dr B.C. Roy).
• 23 August National Space Day (Chandrayaan-3 landing). 29 August National Sports Day (Major Dhyan Chand). 5 September Teachers' Day. 14 September Hindi Diwas. 15 September Engineers' Day (Sir M. Visvesvaraya).
• 2 October Gandhi Jayanti and International Day of Non-Violence. 8 October Air Force Day. 16 October World Food Day. 24 October UN Day. 31 October National Unity Day (Sardar Patel).
• 14 November Children's Day. 26 November Constitution Day. 1 December World AIDS Day. 4 December Navy Day. 10 December Human Rights Day. 23 December Kisan Diwas.

Firsts in India and the world

• First Indian in space: Rakesh Sharma (1984). First Indian to visit the International Space Station: Shubhanshu Shukla (Axiom-4 mission, 2025).
• First woman Prime Minister: Indira Gandhi. First woman President: Pratibha Patil. First woman Governor: Sarojini Naidu. First woman Chief Minister: Sucheta Kripalani.
• First Indian woman to climb Mount Everest: Bachendri Pal (1984). First Indian woman Olympic medallist: Karnam Malleswari (2000). First individual Olympic gold: Abhinav Bindra (2008).
• First Param Vir Chakra: Major Somnath Sharma (1947). First Indian Nobel laureate: Rabindranath Tagore (1913).
• World: first person in space Yuri Gagarin (1961); first woman in space Valentina Tereshkova (1963); first on the Moon Neil Armstrong (1969); first to climb Everest Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary (1953).

Longest, highest, largest in India

• Longest national highway: NH 44 (Srinagar to Kanyakumari). Longest sea bridge: Atal Setu, Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (about 21.8 km).
• Highest railway bridge: Chenab Bridge in Jammu and Kashmir. Longest railway platform: Shree Siddharoodha Swamiji station, Hubballi (Karnataka).
• Highest dam: Tehri (Uttarakhand). Longest dam: Hirakud (Odisha). Largest freshwater lake: Wular (J&K). Largest brackish-water lagoon: Chilika (Odisha).
• Tallest statue: Statue of Unity (182 m, Sardar Patel, Gujarat). Largest cricket stadium: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
• Most populous state: Uttar Pradesh. Largest delta and mangrove forest: Sundarbans (West Bengal).

💡 Link each day to a person: 5 Sept Radhakrishnan, 15 Sept Visvesvaraya, 29 Aug Dhyan Chand, 1 July B.C. Roy, 31 Oct Patel, 23 Dec Charan Singh. A name makes the date easy to recall.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

3. World and Indian Organisations and Their Headquarters

Organisation-and-headquarters questions appear in almost every SSC and bank paper. Learn them as pairs, and learn the basic membership facts of groups like BRICS, SCO, G20 and ASEAN.

United Nations and its agencies

• The UN was founded on 24 October 1945 and has 193 member states. Its headquarters is in New York. The Security Council has 5 permanent and 10 non-permanent members.
• In New York: UNICEF and UNDP. In Geneva: WHO, ILO, ITU, WMO, WIPO and UNHCR. In Paris: UNESCO.
• In Rome: FAO, IFAD and the World Food Programme. In Vienna: IAEA and UNIDO. In Nairobi: UNEP and UN-Habitat.
• International Court of Justice: The Hague (Netherlands). ICAO (civil aviation): Montreal. IMO (shipping): London. Universal Postal Union: Bern.
• India has been a non-permanent member of the Security Council eight times, most recently in 2021-22.

International groups and money bodies

• IMF and World Bank: Washington DC; both came from the Bretton Woods conference of 1944. WTO: Geneva, set up on 1 January 1995 (it replaced GATT).
• BRICS: began as BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China; first summit 2009) and became BRICS when South Africa joined in 2010. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the UAE joined in 2024 and Indonesia in January 2025. India holds the BRICS chair in 2026. Its New Development Bank is in Shanghai.
• SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation): founded 2001, secretariat in Beijing. India and Pakistan joined in 2017, Iran in 2023 and Belarus in 2024, making 10 members.
• G20: 19 countries plus the European Union and the African Union (the AU joined at the New Delhi summit, 2023). It has no permanent headquarters.
• ASEAN: founded 1967 in Bangkok, secretariat in Jakarta. Timor-Leste became its 11th member in October 2025. India is not a member but a strategic partner.
• SAARC: founded 8 December 1985 in Dhaka, secretariat in Kathmandu, 8 members (Afghanistan joined in 2007). Other HQs: ADB Manila, AIIB Beijing, OPEC Vienna, NATO Brussels.

Indian institutions and their headquarters

• Mumbai: RBI, SEBI, NABARD, EXIM Bank, NPCI, LIC and SBI. Hyderabad: IRDAI. Lucknow: SIDBI. New Delhi: NHB and PFRDA.
• Bengaluru: ISRO, Indian Institute of Science, Coffee Board and Central Silk Board. Kolkata: Tea Board, Geological Survey, Zoological Survey and Botanical Survey of India.
• Dehradun: Survey of India and Forest Research Institute. Kochi: Spices Board and Coir Board. Kottayam: Rubber Board.
• Mumbai (Trombay): Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. Goa: National Institute of Oceanography. New Delhi: DRDO, ICAR, CSIR and NITI Aayog.
• Sports bodies: International Olympic Committee - Lausanne; FIFA - Zurich; ICC (cricket) - Dubai.

💡 Make city groups: Geneva = health, labour, telecom, weather, trade (WHO, ILO, ITU, WMO, WTO); Rome = food (FAO, IFAD, WFP); Vienna = atoms and industry (IAEA, UNIDO).

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

4. Awards, Books and Authors, and Sports

Awards, famous books and sports facts make up a large share of static GK. This lesson covers the main Indian and world awards, the classic books asked in exams, and sports trophies, terms and Olympic facts.

Indian civilian, gallantry and sports awards

• Bharat Ratna (since 1954) is the highest civilian award. First awardees: C. Rajagopalachari, S. Radhakrishnan and C.V. Raman. The most recent awards were announced in 2024 (five awardees, including Karpoori Thakur and L.K. Advani); none were announced in 2025.
• Padma awards (since 1954) come in three grades: Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri. They are announced on the eve of Republic Day.
• Wartime gallantry: Param Vir Chakra, Maha Vir Chakra, Vir Chakra. Peacetime gallantry: Ashoka Chakra, Kirti Chakra, Shaurya Chakra.
• The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna was renamed the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in August 2021. It is India's highest sports honour.
• Arjuna Award: for outstanding sportspersons. Dronacharya Award: for coaches. Dadasaheb Phalke Award: for cinema (first to Devika Rani, 1969). Jnanpith Award: for literature (first to G. Sankara Kurup, 1965).

Nobel, Booker and Oscar

• Nobel Prizes are given in six fields: Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature, Peace and Economics (Economics added later, first given in 1969). Peace is given in Oslo; the others in Stockholm.
• Indian-linked Nobel laureates: Tagore (Literature 1913), C.V. Raman (Physics 1930), Mother Teresa (Peace 1979), Amartya Sen (Economics 1998), Kailash Satyarthi (Peace 2014), Abhijit Banerjee (Economics 2019).
• Booker Prize winners of Indian origin: Salman Rushdie (Midnight's Children, 1981), Arundhati Roy (The God of Small Things, 1997), Kiran Desai (The Inheritance of Loss, 2006), Aravind Adiga (The White Tiger, 2008).
• International Booker Prize (for translated books): Geetanjali Shree's 'Tomb of Sand' (Hindi, 2022) and Banu Mushtaq's 'Heart Lamp' (Kannada, translated by Deepa Bhasthi, 2025).
• Oscars: Bhanu Athaiya was the first Indian winner (costume design, Gandhi, 1983). A.R. Rahman won two in 2009. In 2023 'Naatu Naatu' (RRR) won Best Original Song and 'The Elephant Whisperers' won Best Documentary Short.

Classic books and authors

• Ancient: Arthashastra - Kautilya; Indica - Megasthenes; Abhijnanashakuntalam - Kalidasa; Mudrarakshasa - Vishakhadatta; Harshacharita - Banabhatta; Rajatarangini - Kalhana.
• Medieval: Baburnama - Babur; Akbarnama - Abul Fazl.
• Freedom movement: Hind Swaraj and My Experiments with Truth - Mahatma Gandhi; Poverty and Un-British Rule in India - Dadabhai Naoroji; Gita Rahasya - B.G. Tilak; India Wins Freedom - Maulana Azad.
• More: The Discovery of India - Jawaharlal Nehru; Annihilation of Caste - B.R. Ambedkar; Why I Am an Atheist - Bhagat Singh; Gitanjali - Tagore; Anandamath - Bankim Chandra.
• Modern: Godan - Premchand; Malgudi Days - R.K. Narayan; Train to Pakistan - Khushwant Singh; Wings of Fire - A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.

Sports: trophies, terms and the Olympics

• Cricket: Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy, Irani Cup. Football: Durand Cup (Asia's oldest football tournament), Santosh Trophy, Subroto Cup (schools).
• Badminton: Thomas Cup (men's teams), Uber Cup (women's teams). Tennis: Davis Cup (men), Billie Jean King Cup (women). Golf: Ryder Cup. Hockey: Beighton Cup, Aga Khan Cup.
• Terms: googly, LBW (cricket); deuce, ace (tennis); checkmate, gambit (chess); birdie, bogey (golf); offside, penalty (football); smash, let (badminton).
• The Olympic flag has five rings for five continents. Paris 2024: India won 6 medals (1 silver by Neeraj Chopra in javelin, 5 bronze); Manu Bhaker won two bronze medals in shooting.
• Tokyo 2020: India won 7 medals, including Neeraj Chopra's javelin gold, India's first in athletics. Next Summer Olympics: Los Angeles 2028, then Brisbane 2032.

💡 For books, ask 'which period?' first: ancient (Kautilya, Kalidasa, Kalhana), Mughal (Babur, Abul Fazl), freedom struggle (Gandhi, Naoroji, Tilak) or modern novelists. It removes two wrong options quickly.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.