🇮🇳 Chapter 01 · Topic 06 · National Symbols

National Symbols of India — Complete Revision

All national symbols — master table with scientific names, adoption dates, and exam-ready checklist.

⚡ Master Table — All National Symbols

Symbol	Name	Scientific Name	Adopted/Declared
National Flag	Tiranga (Tricolour)	—	22 July 1947
National Emblem	Lion Capital of Ashoka	—	26 January 1950
National Anthem	Jana Gana Mana	—	24 January 1950
National Song	Vande Mataram	—	24 January 1950
National Animal	Bengal Tiger	Panthera tigris tigris	1973
National Bird	Indian Peacock	Pavo cristatus	1963
National Flower	Lotus	Nelumbo nucifera	1950
National Tree	Banyan	Ficus benghalensis	1950
National River	Ganga	—	4 November 2008
National Sport	Field Hockey	—	No official declaration
National Fruit	Mango	Mangifera indica	—
National Vegetable	Pumpkin	Cucurbita maxima	—
National Aquatic Animal	Gangetic River Dolphin	Platanista gangetica	2009
National Heritage Animal	Indian Elephant	Elephas maximus indicus	2010
National Reptile	King Cobra	Ophiophagus hannah	—
National Butterfly	Indian Peacock Swallowtail	Papilio krishna	2013
National Microbe	Lactobacillus delbrueckii	—	2012
National Currency Symbol	₹ (Rupee)	—	15 July 2010
National Calendar	Saka Calendar	—	22 March 1957

⚡ Quick-Fire Key Facts

Question	Answer
Designer of national flag	Pingali Venkayya (Andhra Pradesh)
Ashoka Chakra spokes	24 (represents 24 hours)
Motto on national emblem	Satyameva Jayate (Mundaka Upanishad)
Author of Jana Gana Mana	Rabindranath Tagore
Author of Vande Mataram	Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Vande Mataram published in	Novel “Anandamath” (1882)
National anthem duration	~52 seconds (full version)
National animal before tiger	Asiatic Lion (until 1973)
Project Tiger launched	1 April 1973 by PM Indira Gandhi
India’s tiger population (2022)	~3,682 (largest in world)
Rupee symbol designer	D. Udaya Kumar (IIT Bombay)
National pledge author	Pydimarri Venkata Subba Rao
Largest banyan tree in India	Indian Botanical Garden, Howrah, WB
National Sports Day	29 August (Major Dhyan Chand’s birthday)
India’s Olympic hockey golds	8 (1928–1964, then 2020 Tokyo)

✅ Master Revision Checklist — Chapter 01

✅ National flag = tricolour = saffron + white + green = ratio 2:3 = Pingali Venkayya
✅ Ashoka Chakra = 24 spokes = navy blue = from Lion Capital, Sarnath
✅ National emblem = Lion Capital = Satyameva Jayate = Mundaka Upanishad
✅ Jana Gana Mana = Tagore = adopted 24 Jan 1950 = ~52 seconds
✅ Vande Mataram = Bankim Chandra = Anandamath (1882) = “I bow to thee, Mother”
✅ National animal = Bengal Tiger = 1973 = Project Tiger = 54 reserves
✅ National bird = Indian Peacock = 1963 = Schedule I WPA
✅ National flower = Lotus = 1950 = purity + enlightenment
✅ National tree = Banyan = 1950 = immortality + unity
✅ National river = Ganga = 4 Nov 2008 = Namami Gange (2014)
✅ National aquatic animal = Gangetic Dolphin = 2009 = Endangered
✅ National heritage animal = Indian Elephant = 2010 = Project Elephant (1992)
✅ Rupee symbol ₹ = D. Udaya Kumar = adopted 15 July 2010
✅ Saka Calendar = adopted 22 March 1957 = Chaitra = era begins 78 CE
✅ National fruit = Mango; National vegetable = Pumpkin
✅ National microbe = Lactobacillus delbrueckii = 2012
✅ National butterfly = Indian Peacock Swallowtail = Papilio krishna = 2013