This 76-year-old factory in Mysuru becomes fully occupied when the country or the States witness elections as the special product it manufactures is most indispensable in an election. For, it is the country’s sole manufacturer of indelible ink that is used for applying on the voters’ finger.
Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Mysore Paints and Varnish Ltd (MPVL), a government of Karnataka undertaking, has got order from the Election Commission of India (ECI) for producing 26.5 lakh vials of indelible ink or the voters’ ink. This is reckoned to be the biggest order the factory has received from the EC since it started producing the ink.
MPVL is an enterprise started by the Mysore Maharajas and has been supplying ink for every election in the country for over six decades.
The ink is always manufactured against the orders and each vial contains 10 ml of ink. A 10-ml vial can be applied on the fingers of nearly 700 voters. Also, the ink is a result of a “special chemical formulation” that “lasts longer”, the company claims.
In December 2023, MPVL got the order for the ink that is estimated to be valued around ₹55 crore and thereafter it started the production, roping in additional staff for completing the job at the earliest.
So far, the ink has been delivered to 19 States, including the North-Eastern States, and the production was in full swing to meet the target with the MPVL aiming to complete the delivery by the second week of March. MPVL Managing Director K. Mohammad Irfan and General Manager Harakumar were closely monitoring the production.
The MPVL had supplied nearly 1.3 lakh vials of ink for the Assembly polls in the State last year.
Mr. Mohammad Irfan told The Hindu that the order for the ink is 50,000 vials more this year compared to the last elections and said the EC’s order will be fully met by March 15. “With the rise in cost of raw materials, especially silver which is used for producing ink, the EC revised the rates for the ink and the total value of the order was around ₹55 crore,” he said.
Top officials from the EC had visited the factory and inspected the ink production. They were satisfied with the production, Mr. Irfan added.
The highest quantity of ink had been supplied to Uttar Pradesh which is around 3.58 lakh vials while the lowest order was to Lakshadweep which is 125 vials.
Mr Irfan said the ink had been safely delivered to 19 States. For logistical reasons, the orders were first dispatched to distant locations particularly the North Eastern States. U.P., Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Goa, Tamil Nadu are among those where the ink had been delivered, he added.
A state-of-the-art R and D lab has been set up in MPVL for ensuring the quality of the products manufactured at MPVL.
“The proposal for modernising the factory will be discussed with the Industries Minister after the Lob Sabha elections,” he said, adding that diversification plans will be put forth before the government.
When asked about the indelible ink pen, Mr. Irfan said the product development as per the EC’s advice was nearing completion or can be said in final stages. Its use in elections depends on the EC’s approval.
