Recently, for the first time in our country, which of the following States has declared a…

Answer: (d) Maharashtra

Maharashtra was the first State in India to have an official State butterfly, and it chose the Blue Mormon (Papilio polymnestor). The Maharashtra Forest Department's own butterfly guide records this.

• ✓ (d) The Blue Mormon (Papilio polymnestor) was declared the State butterfly of Maharashtra, and Maharashtra is described as the first State in India to have one. It is a large swallowtail with a wingspan of 120-150 mm.
• ✗ (a) Arunachal Pradesh has also named a State butterfly, the Kaiser-i-Hind, but Maharashtra's choice was the first in the country.
• • Since then Since 2016 other States have named their own State butterflies as well, so 'first' describes the position only when the question was set. The Maharashtra Forest Department's Pench guide, for instance, notes that the Kaiser-i-Hind is Arunachal Pradesh's State butterfly.

Remember · Maharashtra was India's first State to declare a State butterfly: the Blue Mormon, Papilio polymnestor.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). · Report an error