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Madhya Pradesh General Knowledge: key facts and practice questions

Revise Madhya Pradesh General Knowledge for MPPSC and MP Police exams: the facts and distinctions that keep coming up, a one-glance revision list, and 10 practice questions with answers and explanations.

Drafted with AI assistance and fact-checked on 2026-10-15; not yet read line by line by a human editor. Spotted a mistake? Tell us. Editorial standards & corrections

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Key concepts and facts

Ancient and medieval history: Bhimbetka rock shelters in Raisen district carry Stone Age paintings. Ujjain (Ujjayini) was the capital of the Avanti Mahajanapada. Ashoka built the Great Stupa at Sanchi, and the Heliodorus pillar at Besnagar near Vidisha was raised by a Greek envoy in honour of Vasudeva. The Udayagiri caves near Vidisha, with the Varaha panel, belong to the Gupta age. The Chandelas built Khajuraho, the Paramaras ruled Malwa from Dhar, where Raja Bhoj patronised learning and began the giant Bhojeshwar temple at Bhojpur, and the Kalachuris ruled from Tripuri near Jabalpur. Dilawar Khan Ghuri founded the Malwa Sultanate in 1401; Hoshang Shah shifted the capital to Mandu, where Ghiyasuddin Khilji built the Jahaz Mahal and Baz Bahadur and Rupmati became legend. Rani Durgavati of the Gond kingdom of Garha-Katanga died fighting Akbar's general Asaf Khan in 1564. Chhatrasal carved out Bundelkhand and gave a share to Peshwa Bajirao I. Ahilyabai Holkar ruled from Maheshwar and the Scindias, founded by Ranoji, ruled Gwalior.
1857 and the modern state: Rani Lakshmibai fell near Gwalior in June 1858 and Tantya Tope was hanged at Shivpuri in April 1859. Gond rulers Shankar Shah and Raghunath Shah were executed at Jabalpur in 1857, and Tantya Bhil of Nimar was hanged in 1889. Chandrashekhar Azad was born at Bhabra, now in Alirajpur district, and Dr B R Ambedkar at Mhow. Madhya Pradesh was formed on 1 November 1956 by merging Madhya Bharat, Vindhya Pradesh, Bhopal State and the Hindi parts of the old Central Provinces; Ravishankar Shukla was the first Chief Minister and Bhopal became the capital. Chhattisgarh was separated on 1 November 2000. The Bhopal gas tragedy of 2 to 3 December 1984 involved methyl isocyanate from the Union Carbide plant.
Geography: Madhya Pradesh is the heart of India, touching Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The Tropic of Cancer crosses districts such as Ratlam, Ujjain, Bhopal, Vidisha, Sagar, Jabalpur and Shahdol. Regions are the Malwa plateau with black regur soil, Bundelkhand, Baghelkhand (Rewa, Satna, Sidhi), Nimar and the Vindhya and Satpura ranges. Dhupgarh near Pachmarhi, 1350 metres, is the highest point. The Narmada rises at Amarkantak and flows west through a rift valley to the Gulf of Khambhat; the Tapti rises at Multai and also flows west, while the Son rises near Amarkantak and flows to the Ganga. The Chambal rises at Janapav near Mhow, the Shipra passes Ujjain, the Betwa flows past Orchha and the Ken through Panna. Dams to remember: Gandhi Sagar on the Chambal, Bargi, Indira Sagar and Omkareshwar on the Narmada, Tawa on the Tawa, Bansagar on the Son. The Marble Rocks and Dhuandhar falls are at Bhedaghat near Jabalpur.
Forests and wildlife: the state has the largest forest area in the country and earned the title tiger state. Kanha (hard-ground barasingha), Bandhavgarh in Umaria, Pench (Jungle Book country), Panna on the Ken, Satpura inside the Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve, Madhav at Shivpuri, Sanjay in Sidhi, Van Vihar in Bhopal and Kuno in Sheopur are the main national parks. The National Chambal Sanctuary protects the gharial. The Bhoj wetland at Bhopal was the state's first Ramsar site in 2002.
Economy: Panna is India's only diamond-mining district, Malanjkhand in Balaghat is a major copper mine (Hindustan Copper), Balaghat gives manganese, Singrauli gives coal and power, Katni gives bauxite and limestone. The state is the soya state, a leading pulses producer and famous for Sharbati wheat from Sehore. Pithampur in Dhar is the auto hub, BHEL is at Bhopal, NEPA newsprint at Nepanagar, the Security Paper Mill at Narmadapuram (formerly Hoshangabad), the Bank Note Press at Dewas and ordnance factories at Jabalpur. Chanderi (Ashoknagar), Maheshwari (Khargone) and Bagh prints (Dhar) are GI handicrafts. Rewa hosts the 750 MW ultra mega solar park.
Polity and culture: the Vidhan Sabha has 230 seats and there is no Vidhan Parishad; 29 Lok Sabha and 11 Rajya Sabha members; High Court at Jabalpur with benches at Indore and Gwalior. Madhya Pradesh has the largest tribal population of any state, with Bhils, Gonds, Baigas, Korkus and Saharias. State symbols: barasingha, dudhraj (paradise flycatcher), banyan and palash (flower; some lists give the Madonna lily). Folk dances include Rai and Badhai of Bundelkhand, Matki and Phulpati of Malwa and Karma of the Gonds and Baigas. Tansen is remembered at Gwalior, Alauddin Khan founded the Maihar gharana, Lata Mangeshkar was born at Indore and Kishore Kumar at Khandwa. Festivals: Simhastha at Ujjain, Kalidas Samaroh at Ujjain, Khajuraho dance festival, Lokrang at Bhopal and the Bhil Bhagoria haat. Writers: Makhanlal Chaturvedi (Ek Bharatiya Atma), Subhadra Kumari Chauhan and Harishankar Parsai of Jabalpur, Bhavani Prasad Mishra. State awards: Tansen Samman for music, Kalidas Samman for the arts, Kabir Samman for poetry, Maithili Sharan Gupt Samman for Hindi literature.
Traps: Bhilai steel plant is in Chhattisgarh, not Madhya Pradesh. Chitrakoot is shared with Uttar Pradesh. Mandu is not a UNESCO site; Khajuraho, Sanchi and Bhimbetka are. The Son does not flow west like the Narmada and Tapti. Indore, the largest city, is not the capital and is not crossed by the Tropic of Cancer. Mahakaleshwar and Omkareshwar are the state's only two jyotirlingas.

One-glance revision list

Formation date to lock in: 1 November 1956 (state formed), 1 November 2000 (Chhattisgarh carved out). Same date, 44 years apart.
Three UNESCO World Heritage Sites (as of 2026), all with letters S, K, B: Sanchi (Buddhist stupa), Khajuraho (Chandela temples), Bhimbetka (rock shelters).
West-flowing rivers of MP are Narmada and Tapti, both in rift valleys between Vindhya and Satpura. Son rises at the same Amarkantak but flows north-east to the Ganga.
Dam to river: Gandhi Sagar = Chambal, Bargi and Indira Sagar = Narmada, Bansagar = Son, Tawa = Tawa, Rajghat = Betwa.
Highest peak Dhupgarh (1350 m) is in the Satpura range at Pachmarhi, not at Amarkantak in the Maikal hills.
Mineral map: Panna = diamond, Malanjkhand (Balaghat) = copper, Balaghat = manganese, Singrauli = coal, Katni = bauxite and limestone.
Capitals of dynasties: Paramara = Dhar, Kalachuri = Tripuri (Jabalpur), Chandela = Khajuraho region, Malwa Sultanate = Mandu, Holkar = Indore and Maheshwar, Scindia = Gwalior, Bundela = Orchha.
1857 deaths and places: Rani Lakshmibai near Gwalior (June 1858), Tantya Tope hanged at Shivpuri (April 1859), Shankar Shah and Raghunath Shah executed at Jabalpur (1857).
Birthplaces: Lata Mangeshkar = Indore, Kishore Kumar = Khandwa, Chandrashekhar Azad = Bhabra, Dr Ambedkar = Mhow, Atal Bihari Vajpayee = Gwalior, Kailash Satyarthi = Vidisha.
Numbers: Vidhan Sabha 230, Lok Sabha 29, Rajya Sabha 11, no Vidhan Parishad, High Court at Jabalpur with Indore and Gwalior benches.
Awards: Tansen Samman = classical music, Kalidas Samman = arts, Kabir Samman = poetry, Maithili Sharan Gupt Samman = Hindi literature.
Trap pair: Bhilai steel plant is in Chhattisgarh; the MP industrial names are BHEL Bhopal, Pithampur auto hub, NEPA Nepanagar and ordnance factories Jabalpur.

Lessons in depth

10 longer lessons on Madhya Pradesh General Knowledge, one per sub-topic, each with its key facts and a quick revision.

Practice questions

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1. The Bhimbetka rock shelters, famous for prehistoric cave paintings, are located in which district of Madhya Pradesh? (A) Sehore (B) Vidisha (C) Raisen (D) Narmadapuram

Answer: (C) Raisen. Bhimbetka lies in Raisen district, south of Bhopal, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with paintings going back to the Stone Age.

2. Nobel Peace Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi was born in which town of Madhya Pradesh? (A) Bhopal (B) Gwalior (C) Vidisha (D) Sagar

Answer: (C) Vidisha. Kailash Satyarthi, founder of Bachpan Bachao Andolan, was born at Vidisha in 1954 and shared the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize with Malala Yousafzai.

3. The Saharia, a particularly vulnerable tribal group of Madhya Pradesh, lives mainly in which area? (A) Mandla-Dindori (B) Jhabua-Alirajpur (C) Sheopur-Shivpuri-Gwalior (D) Betul-Khandwa

Answer: (C) Sheopur-Shivpuri-Gwalior. The Saharias live in the Gwalior-Chambal region (Sheopur, Shivpuri, Gwalior, Guna); the Baigas are in Mandla-Dindori, Bhils in Jhabua-Alirajpur and Korkus in Betul-Khandwa.

4. The Vikram Samvat, traditionally linked with King Vikramaditya of Ujjain, begins in which year? (A) 78 CE (B) 248 CE (C) 57 BCE (D) 319 CE

Answer: (C) 57 BCE. The Vikram Samvat starts in 57 BCE, so it runs 57 years ahead of the Common Era. The Shaka era starts in 78 CE and the Gupta era in 319-320 CE.

5. Arrange the following events in chronological order: 1. Babur captures Chanderi 2. Bahadur Shah of Gujarat annexes the Malwa Sultanate 3. Adham Khan defeats Baz Bahadur 4. Sher Shah Suri takes Raisen fort (A) 2, 1, 4, 3 (B) 1, 2, 4, 3 (C) 1, 4, 2, 3 (D) 2, 1, 3, 4

Answer: (B) 1, 2, 4, 3. Babur took Chanderi in 1528, Bahadur Shah annexed Malwa in 1531, Sher Shah took Raisen in 1543 and Akbar's general Adham Khan defeated Baz Bahadur in 1561.

6. In December 1843 the British defeated the forces of which state in the battles of Maharajpur and Panniar, fought on the same day? (A) The Holkar state of Indore (B) The Nawabs of Bhopal (C) The Scindia state of Gwalior (D) The Bundela state of Orchha

Answer: (C) The Scindia state of Gwalior. On 29 December 1843 British armies defeated the Gwalior forces at Maharajpur and Panniar, and the treaty that followed cut down the Gwalior army. Lord Ellenborough was then Governor-General.

7. The Jungle Satyagraha of 1930 in the Central Provinces, in which tribal people defied the forest laws, was part of which national movement? (A) Non-Cooperation Movement (B) Civil Disobedience Movement (C) Quit India Movement (D) Khilafat Movement

Answer: (B) Civil Disobedience Movement. In 1930, as part of Civil Disobedience, people in the forest districts of the Central Provinces cut grass and wood in reserved forests to break the forest laws, much as others broke the salt law.

8. The Scheduled Areas in the tribal districts of Madhya Pradesh are administered under which Schedule of the Constitution? (A) Fifth Schedule (B) Sixth Schedule (C) Seventh Schedule (D) Ninth Schedule

Answer: (A) Fifth Schedule. Madhya Pradesh is a Fifth Schedule state, where the Governor has special powers over Scheduled Areas and a Tribes Advisory Council advises on tribal welfare. The Sixth Schedule covers tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram only.

9. The Chachai, Keoti and Purwa waterfalls are located in which district of Madhya Pradesh? (A) Satna (B) Sidhi (C) Shahdol (D) Rewa

Answer: (D) Rewa. All three falls are in Rewa district, where the Tons and its tributaries plunge over the edge of the Rewa plateau.

10. The heavy electrical equipment plant at Bhopal, the first unit of what later became BHEL, was set up in the 1950s with technical collaboration from which country? (A) United Kingdom (B) Soviet Union (C) Czechoslovakia (D) West Germany

Answer: (A) United Kingdom. Heavy Electricals (India) Ltd began at Bhopal in 1956 with help from Associated Electrical Industries of Britain. BHEL's Haridwar units were built with Soviet help and those at Tiruchirappalli and Hyderabad with Czechoslovak help.

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Where this is tested

Madhya Pradesh General Knowledge is tested in MPPSC and MP Police exams. Check the current official notification and syllabus of the exam you are preparing for to see how it is covered.

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