Mysore Paints and Varnish Ltd. (MPVL), a State government undertaking, will supply 99,000 bottles — of 5 ml each — of indelible ink for the forthcoming local body elections.
Company chairman N.V. Phaneesh said on Tuesday that the State Election Commission has placed the order for ink bottles for the gram panchayat elections, to be held later this month.
Mr. Phaneesh, who only recently took charge as chairman, said the company would also supply 6,580 packets of sealing wax for the elections, and the total turnover based on the current orders was ₹1.15 crore.
MPVL is the only company engaged in the manufacture of indelible ink used in elections in India. It has also supplied the same to other countries for elections. During 2019-20, MPVL exported indelible ink to the tune of ₹2.17 crore. Established in 1937 by the Wadiyars of Mysore, it was taken over by the government in 1947 and became a public sector unit.
“We had set a turnover target of ₹20 crore for the financial year 2020-21. The company has achieved ₹12.25 crore as of November,” said Mr. Phaneesh. MPVL had a turnover of ₹21.52 crore in the previous financial year (2019-20), out of which ₹16.93 crore came through sale of indelible ink alone. The profit before tax was ₹4.7 crore.
MPVL also produced indelible ink and ballot-marking pens for the recently concluded Bihar Assembly elections and the Lok Sabha and Assembly byelections in different States. It was also mandated to supply indelible ink and ballot-marking pens for the Legislative Council elections (teachers and graduates constituencies) of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Bihar, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh.
Speaking of the future, Mr. Phaneesh said MPVL has plans to establish a new plant and explore business from other Union government organisations and public sector units such as the Railways, BHEL, and BEML, besides establishing an in-house research and development centre.
MPVL has declared 25% dividend for its shareholders for 2019-20, and the profit share of the State government, amounting to ₹23.68 lakh, will be handed over to the Chief Minister shortly.