Punjab GK Questions and Current Affairs
History
• Punjab was continuously attacked by the Persian kings.
• In 321 BC, the Great Greek King Alexander won Punjab, after defeating Persian kings.
Ancient Punjab formed part of the vast Indo-Iranian region.
• In later years Punjab saw the rise and fall of the Bactrians, Sakas, Mauryas, Greeks, Kushans
and Guptas.
• Ghaznavi was followed by the slaves, the Ghoris, the Khiljis, the Tughlaks, the Lodhis and
the Mughals.
• Fifteenth and sixteenth centuries was marked a period of the watershed in the history of
Punjab.
• The Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru, who transformed the Sikhs into the Khalsa.
• After two abortive Anglo-Sikh wars, Punjab was finally annexed to the British Empire in
1849. The fight against the British rule has started long before Mahatma Gandhi’s arrival.
• First, it was Namdhari sect, who believed in self-discipline and self-rule. After that, it was
Lala Lajpat Rai who played a leading role in the Freedom Movement.
• Punjab was in the leaders of India’s freedom struggle on all fronts in India and abroad.
• Eight princely states of East Punjab were grouped to form a single state called PEPSUPatiala
and the East Punjab States Union-with Patiala as its capital. PEPSU was merged with
Punjab in 1956. Later in 1966, Haryana was carved out of Punjab.
The Punjab State is historically known as Sapta Sindhu that means the Land of Seven Rivers, the
name Punjab was given by the Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent. Let us check out the
major Historical events of Punjab.
1. Founded on 1st November 1966
2. Also Known As Sapta Sindhu
3. Ruled By Maurya, Mughals and Afghans
4. Major Historical
Events
Banda Singh Bahadur had freed Punjab from Mughal rule in 1709-
10 Museums
S.No. Name City
1. Sanghol Museum Sanghol
2. Sikh Ajaibghar Balongi
3. Virasat E Khalsa Rupnagar
4. Maharaja Ranjit Singh Museum Amritsar
5. Punjab Agricultural University Museum Ludhiana
6. The Partition Museum Amritsar
7. Maharaja Ranjit Singh War Museum Ludhiana
8. Punjab Rural Heritage Museum Ludhiana
9. Shaheed-E-Azam Museum Jalandhar
10 Sardar Bhagat Singh Museum Khatkar Kalan
11. Punjab State War Heroes Memorial & Museum Amritsar
Geographical Structure
Punjab is situated in northwestern India and has a total area of 50,362 Km square. Punjab is
surrounded by Pakistan on the west, Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Himachal Pradesh on the
northeast and Haryana and Rajasthan on the south. Most of Punjab land is fertile, with many rivers
and an extensive irrigation canal system.
A belt of hills extends along the northeastern part of the state at the foot of the Himalayas. Its
average altitude is 300 metres above sea level, with a range from 180 metres (590 ft) in the
southwest to more than 500 metres (1,600 ft) around the northeast border. The Shiwalik Hills
extend along the northeastern part of the state at the foot of the Himalayas.
Below in this table, we have described all the essential Geographical Structure of Punjab you
must know if you want to clear PSSC and HTET or any state-level government exams.
Description Summary
1. Total Area 50,362 square kilometres (19,445 sq mi)
2. Population 27,704,236
3. The rank of the state
Area wise:- 20th
Population wise:- 16th
4. Population Density 550/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
5. State Bounded By
Pakistan to the West
Jammu and Kashmir on the north
Haryana and Rajasthan on the south
6. Soil & Minerals
Soil
Alluvial Soil
Saline and alkaline soil
Desert Soil
Minerals
Limestone
Calcite
7. Major Crops
Wheat
Rice
Sugarcane
Cotton
Legume
orange
8. Forest Area 1837 km2
9. Climate Subtropical
10. Major Flora Mulberry
peaches
almonds
figs
oranges
apples
11. Major Fauna
Fox
squirrel
mongoose
deer
Rivers
Name Length Place of Origin Terminates in
1. Sutlej 1500 Rakshastal lake in Tibet Chenab river
2. Beas 470 Beas Kund in Himalayas,
Himachal Pradesh
Sutlej river at Harike in Tarn Taran district
3. Ravi 720 Kangra district of Himachal
Pradesh Chenab river
4. Chenab 960 Upper Himalayas in Lahaul and
Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh
Merge with Sutlej and forms Panjnad
river, which flows into Indus river
5. Jhelum 725 Verinag spring in Kashmir Chenab river
Lakes
There are three major lakes in Punjab which are given below.
S.No. Lake Located in/near
1. Sukhna Lake Chandigarh
2. Harike Lake Ferozpur
3. Kanji Lake Kapurthala
Dams
Punjab is popular for its land and its culture and dams in Punjab support them as water supply to the
crops they grow.
1. Bakhra Nangal Dam Sutlej River Rupnagar
2. Damsel Dam Damsel River Hoshiarpur
3. Ranjit Sagar (Thein) Dam Ravi River Gurdaspur
4. Siswan Dam Siswan Khad Ropar
Administrative Structure
The Punjab state has 5 Divisions and each division is under the administrative control of Divisional
Commissioner. It has 22 Districts each under the administrative control of a District Collector.
Below is the table, we have served you with the latest Administrative Structure of Punjab.
1. Capital Chandigarh
2. Administrative HQ Chandigarh
3. Chief Ministers Captain Amrinder Singh
4. Governor V.P Singh Badnore
5. State Animal Black Buck
6. State Bird Northern goshawk (Baaz)
7. State Flower Gladiolus
8. State Tree Shisham
9. No. of District 22
10. Loksabha Seats 13
11. Rajya Sabha Seats 7
12. Major Railway Station Ferozpur railway division
Ambala railway division
13. Official Language Punjabi
14. Time Zone IST (UTC+05:30
15. Postal Code 140307 to 152116
16. Vehicle Code PB- XX
17. Judiciary Chandigarh High Court
Special Titles of Cities City Nick Name
1 Amritsar City of Golden Temple, Holy City
2 Patiala Royal City
Arts & Culture
Punjab is a beautiful state. It has so many elements of culture including Music and Dance.
The Punjabi music industry is one of the highly flourishing industries in the world. Bhangra is the main
element of Punjabi Culture. Let us check out Punjab current affairs Complete information about
Punjab Culture and Tradition which is followed by the people of Punjab.
1. Folk Dance Bhangra, Gidha
2. Traditional Music
Jindua
Soni
Sahiban
3. Major Festival
Lohri
Holi
Teej
Baisakhi
4. Cuisine (Famous Food) Sarso ka Saag
Makke ki roti
Tandoori Chicken
5. Traditional Dress Men-kurta, Tehmat, Pagdi
Women-Patiala suit, Ghagra
Folk Dances
1. Bhangra
2. Karthi
3. Jindua
4. Dandass
5. Sammi
6. Giddha
7. Jaago
8. Kikli
9. Luddi
10.Malwai Giddha
11.Jhumar
Tribes
1. Sikh Jats
2. Khatri clans
4. Arora clans
3. Rajput clans
Regional Festivals
1. Lohri At the end of winter and for Punjabis
2. Basant
Panchami At the arrival of spring
3. Hola Mohalla At Holi gathering of Sikhs for military exercises and mock battles.
4. Baisakhi Khalsa founding anniversary
5. Guru Purbs
held in connection with the lives of the Sikh Gurus Gurupurbs celebrated
are the birthdays of Guru Nanak and Guru Govind Singh and the
martyrdom days of Guru Arjun Dev and Guru Teg Bahadur.
6. Jor Mela in the memory of two sons of Guru Gobind Singh Zorawar Singh and
Fateh Singh who were buried alive in a brick wall
7. Hariballabh
Sangeet Mela in the memory of the sant-musician, Swami Hariballabh held in Jalandhar
Temple, Monument or Sites
Punjab is most famous for its golden temple which is situated in Amritsar, the tourist comes to see it
not from all over India from another country. In this Punjab current affairs article we included all
the reliable information and facts which were asked in the examination.
Located in Remarks
1. Golden
Temple(Sri
Amritsar The holiest Gurdwara of Sikhism
Harmandir Sahib)
2. Fatehgarh Sahib
Gurudwara Sahota It was built 300 years ago for Guru Gobind Singhji’s two
young Sahibzadas were buried alive by the Mughals
3. Takht Sri
Keshgarh Sahib
Anandpur
Sahib
birthplace of the Khalsa, here Guru Gobind Singh named 5
Sikhs
4. Dama dama Sahib Bathinda Guru Gobind Singh Ji stayed here for 9 months and he
worked on the Adi Granth.
5. Quila Mubarak
(Palace) Patiala in 1764 the palace was built by Maharaja Ala Singh
6. Jagatjit Palace Kapurthala Now Defense Ministry runs it as the Sainik School
7.
Jallianwala
Bagh(HistoricalSite)
Amritsar
On Sunday, April 13, 1919, Brigadier-General Reginald
Dyer commanded the British Indian Army soldiers to began
shooting at an unarmed gathering of men, women, and
children without warning.
8. Wagah border Amritsar
The lowering of the flags ceremony is practised daily by
the military that the security forces of India (Border
Security Force) and Pakistan (Pakistan Rangers) have
jointly followed since 1959
Economy
Punjab is considered as “The Granary of India” or “Bread Basket of India” (Most asked
question in Punjab current affairs) due to its land fertility and agriculture production. It produces
10.26% of India’s cotton, 19.5% of India’s wheat, and 11% of India’s rice. According to some
surveys, Punjab has the lowest level of hunger in India. Throughout the given table, we have
defined the Current
Economic Status of Punjab.
1. State GDP 3.17 lakh crore (US$47 billion)
2. Growth rate 5.73%
3. Financial Debt Rs 1.25 lakh cr.
4. GDP per capita rank 15
5. Major Industries
Textile
Tabacco
Flour ash
Cement
chemicals
6 Major Imports
Sugar
Iron and steel
Basic metals and Alloys
7. Major exports
Wheat
Rice
Hand Tools
Yarn and textile
8. GDP by sectors Agriculture 14.5%
livestock, forestry and logging 24.20%
real estate 46.53%
Power Plant
Punjab is a fast-growing state and the major contribution of the power plant in Punjab is remarkable.
1. Guru Nanak Dev Thermal Plant, Bhatinda Thermal power plant
2. Guru Gobind Singh Super Thermal Power Plant, Ropar Thermal power plant
3. Guru Hargobind Thermal Plant, Lehra Mohabbat,
Bhatinda Thermal power plant
4. Ranjit Sagar Dam Hydropower plant
5. Shanan Power House Hydropower plant
Stadiums
There are four major stadiums in Punjab in which Punjab Cricket Association Stadium is most
popular among these four stadiums in Punjab.
Name City
1. Guru Gobind Singh Stadium Jalandhar
2. Gandhi Sports Complex Ground Amritsar
3. Punjab Cricket Association Stadium (Bindra
Stadium) Mohali
4. International Hockey Stadium Mohali
Airports
Punjab has only one international airport and remaining airports in Punjab are domestic.
S.No. Airport Name City Served Category
1. Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport Amritsar International
2. Bathinda Airport Bathinda Domestic
3. Sahnewal Airport Ludhiana Domestic
4. Pathankot Airport Pathankot Domestic
5. Patiala Airport Patiala Domestic
Education
Punjab has seen consistent growth in education. Before people don’t focus on educating the
females. But now the time has changed completely. In this table, we have served the latest
Condition of Education in Punjab.
1. Literacy Rate 70.73%
2. Male 80.44(male)
3. Female 70.73%(female)
4. No. of School 4,138
5. Affiliation Board CBSE,ICSE,Punjab Board
6. No. of University 23
7. No. of colleges 299
Educational Institution
Punjab is developing its medical education as well as other courses the following links will let you
know about all colleges in Punjab.
S.No. Category
1. Medical Colleges in Punjab
2. Dental Colleges in Punjab
3. BAMS Colleges in Punjab
4. BHMS Colleges in Punjab
5. Siddha Medical Colleges in Punjab
6. AYUSH Colleges in Punjab
7. BNYS Colleges in Punjab
8. Veterinary Colleges in Punjab
9. Physiotherapy Colleges in Punjab
10. Law Colleges in Punjab
11. B.Ed Colleges in Punjab
12. Nursing Colleges in Punjab
Heritage Sites
Punjab is the cultural hub and questions comes from Punjab current affairs in the history section.
Punjab has many historic places, battle sites, it also has many archaeological sites like remains of
Indus Valley Civilisation. Let’s read about Heritage sites and major Tourist Attraction in
Punjab.
1. Major Tourist Places Amritsar, Chandigarh
2. Major Monuments
Golden temple
Jallianwala Bagh
3. National Parks/Wildlife sanctuaries
Abohar Wildlife Sanctuary
Harike Wildlife Sanctuary
Bir Moti Bagh Wildlife Sanctuary
Bir Bhadson Wildlife Sanctuary
Wildlife Sanctuary
S.No. Name City
1. Bir chahal Wildlife Sanctuary Mansa
2. Bir Dosanjh Wildlife Sanctuary Patiala
3. Bir Bhadson Wildlife Sanctuary Patiala
4. Bir Mehas Wildlife Sanctuary Patiala
5. Bir Gurdialpura Wildlife Sanctuary Patiala
6. Bir Aishwan Wildlife Sanctuary Sangrur
7. Harike Wildlife Sanctuary Ferozepur
8. Takhni-Rehmapur Wildlife Sanctuary Hoshiarpur
9. Abohar Wildlife Sanctuary Ferozepur
10. Jhajjar Bacholi Wildlife Sanctuary Rupnagar
11. Kathlaur-Kaushlian Wildlife Sanctuary Gurdaspur
National Parks
Name City
1. Mohindra Chaudhary Zoological Park Chhatbir, Mohali
2. Tiger Safari Ludhiana
3. Deer Park Neelon Ludhiana
4. Deer Park Bir Moti Bagh Patiala
5. Deer Park Bir Talab Bhatinda
Community Reserves
1. Lalwan Community Reserve Hoshiarpur
2. Keshopur-Chhamb Community Reserve Gurdaspur