Static GK Questions for SBI CLERK

Capitals and Currencies of Important Countries

SBI Clerk frequently tests capitals and currencies of countries that appear in news — BRICS nations, G7, neighbouring countries of India, and countries recently in the news. Focus on countries where the capital is not the largest city, as those are favourite trick questions. For example, the capital of Australia is Canberra, not Sydney.

• BRICS: Brazil-Brasilia-Real, Russia-Moscow-Ruble, India-New Delhi-Rupee, China-Beijing-Yuan/Renminbi, South Africa-Pretoria-Rand
• Tricky capitals: Canada-Ottawa (not Toronto), Pakistan-Islamabad (not Karachi), Nigeria-Abuja (not Lagos)
• Currencies to memorise: Japan-Yen, Saudi Arabia-Riyal, Israel-Shekel, UAE-Dirham, UK-Pound Sterling
• Newly independent or renamed countries frequently appear: East Timor capital is Dili, currency is US Dollar
• Myanmar capital is Naypyidaw (not Yangon) — a common trap

Headquarters of Important Organisations

Banking and finance organisation HQs are especially important for SBI Clerk. The exam loves to mix up cities — for example, IMF and World Bank are both in Washington DC, while WTO is in Geneva. National and international sports bodies, UN agencies, and Indian regulatory bodies all appear regularly.

• IMF and World Bank — Washington DC; WTO — Geneva; UN — New York; UNESCO — Paris; WHO — Geneva
• Indian regulators: RBI — Mumbai; SEBI — Mumbai; IRDAI — Hyderabad; PFRDA — New Delhi; NABARD — Mumbai
• Asian Development Bank — Manila, Philippines; New Development Bank (NDB/BRICS Bank) — Shanghai
• ICC (Cricket) — Dubai; FIFA — Zurich; IOC — Lausanne, Switzerland
• INTERPOL — Lyon, France; NATO — Brussels; OPEC — Vienna

Important Dams and Rivers of India

Dams and rivers are classic Static GK material in SBI Clerk. Questions typically ask which river a dam is built on, or which state it is in. Remember that many rivers change names or pass through multiple states — the Brahmaputra is called Tsangpo in Tibet and Jamuna in Bangladesh.

• Tehri Dam — Bhagirathi River, Uttarakhand (tallest dam in India)
• Bhakra Nangal Dam — Sutlej River, border of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh
• Sardar Sarovar Dam — Narmada River, Gujarat
• Hirakud Dam — Mahanadi River, Odisha (longest dam in India)
• Nagarjuna Sagar Dam — Krishna River, Telangana-Andhra Pradesh border
• Indira Sagar Dam — Narmada River, Madhya Pradesh

National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries

Expect 1-2 questions on national parks, especially those linked to Project Tiger or UNESCO World Heritage status. Questions ask which state the park is in and which animal it is famous for. Jim Corbett is the oldest and most asked; Kaziranga for one-horned rhino is another favourite.

• Jim Corbett National Park — Uttarakhand — Bengal Tiger (oldest national park in India, 1936)
• Kaziranga National Park — Assam — One-horned Rhinoceros (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
• Sundarbans — West Bengal — Bengal Tiger and Mangrove forests (also UNESCO)
• Gir National Park — Gujarat — Asiatic Lion (only place in wild)
• Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary — Kerala — Elephant and Tiger
• Kanha National Park — Madhya Pradesh — Tiger, inspired Jungle Book

Important Books and Authors

Books by Indian politicians, ex-RBI governors, and recently award-winning authors are tested. Also watch for books written by PM Narendra Modi and books that win Booker Prize or Sahitya Akademi Awards. The question format is usually: match the book to its author or identify the author.

• Discovery of India and Glimpses of World History — Jawaharlal Nehru
• My Experiments with Truth (autobiography) — Mahatma Gandhi
• Wings of Fire and Ignited Minds — APJ Abdul Kalam
• I Do What I Do — Raghuram Rajan (former RBI governor, highly exam-relevant)
• Exam Warriors — Narendra Modi
• The White Tiger (Booker Prize) — Aravind Adiga; Midnight's Children — Salman Rushdie

Constitutional and National Facts of India

These are recurring single-liners in SBI Clerk GA. They test the bare minimum constitutional facts — when the constitution was adopted, who was the first President, national symbols, and important articles. Do not confuse the date of adoption with the date of implementation.

• Constitution adopted on 26 November 1949; came into effect 26 January 1950
• First President: Dr Rajendra Prasad; First PM: Jawaharlal Nehru; First CJI: Justice H J Kania
• National Animal: Bengal Tiger; National Bird: Indian Peacock; National Flower: Lotus; National Fruit: Mango
• National River: Ganga; National Tree: Indian Banyan; National Aquatic Animal: River Dolphin
• Article 21 — Right to Life; Article 32 — Right to Constitutional Remedies (heart of constitution per Ambedkar)
• Schedules: 12 Schedules in total; 8th Schedule lists 22 official languages

Important Awards and Honours

Bharat Ratna, Padma awards, and international prizes like Nobel Prize and Booker Prize appear regularly. SBI Clerk focuses on recent recipients (last 1-2 years) as well as firsts — first recipient, first woman, youngest recipient.

• Bharat Ratna — highest civilian honour; Nobel Peace Prize — awarded in Oslo (all others in Stockholm)
• Padma awards: Padma Vibhushan (2nd highest), Padma Bhushan (3rd), Padma Shri (4th)
• Dadasaheb Phalke Award — highest award in Indian cinema, given by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
• Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna renamed to Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna in 2021
• Arjuna Award — for outstanding performance in sports; Dronacharya Award — for sports coaches

• Confusing date of adoption of Constitution (26 Nov 1949) with Republic Day (26 Jan 1950) — both are asked separately
• Mixing up headquarters: IRDAI is in Hyderabad, NOT Mumbai like RBI and SEBI — a very frequent trap in SBI papers
• Writing capital of Australia as Sydney or Canada as Toronto — always go with the administrative capital, not the largest city
• Confusing Hirakud Dam (longest) with Tehri Dam (tallest) — the words longest and tallest are swapped in wrong answer options deliberately
• Assuming Nobel Peace Prize is given in Stockholm like all other Nobel Prizes — it is given in Oslo, Norway

• HQ trick SWIM: SEBI-World Bank-IMF-WHO all share Washington or Geneva connection except SEBI (Mumbai) — remember SEBI stays home in Mumbai
• Dam heights: T for Tehri = T for Tallest; H for Hirakud = H for Hugest length — same first letter as the quality
• National symbols BATFRL: Bird-Peacock, Animal-Tiger, Tree-Banyan, Fruit-Mango, River-Ganga, fLower-Lotus
• Oslo is the ODD one out for Nobel — Peace prize goes to Oslo, remember O for Oslo O for Only exception

• SBI Clerk Mains GA section has 35 questions in 20 minutes — you have under 35 seconds per question. Static GK is your scoring zone because it needs zero calculation, so aim to answer these in under 15 seconds each.
• Static GK in SBI Clerk is often mixed with current affairs — for example, a question about a new tiger reserve will test both which state it is in (static) and when it was declared (current). Prepare both layers.
• HQ-based questions appear almost every year in SBI Clerk — especially for RBI, SEBI, NABARD, NDB, ADB, and UN agencies. Dedicate a separate list for these.
• Books and authors questions in recent SBI Clerk papers lean towards authors who are also prominent public figures — former RBI governors, PMs, Presidents. Prioritise these over literary fiction.
• National parks questions often come with a twist — asking about the buffer zone state or the river flowing through the park. For example, Kaziranga is on the south bank of Brahmaputra — that level of detail has been tested.