This practice began during India's third general election in 1962, after concerns of voter impersonation in previous elections.

Mysore Paints and Varnish, a company founded in 1937 in Mysore, Karnataka, has been supplying the ink for over six decades.

The company was established by the Maharaja of Mysore and became a public sector company after India's independence.

The Karnataka State Electronics Development Corporation is the sole supplier of voter ink for India's elections, having held this position since 1962.

The ink, which cannot be easily erased, is made of silver nitrate and was invented by Dr. Mathur at the National Physical Laboratory.

The formula for the ink has remained unchanged, and it leaves bluish and brownish stains that last from three days to over a month after being exposed to light.

Over 968 million people are registered to vote in India's general election, which began on April 19 and will continue in six phases until June 1.

The Election Commission in India ordered 2.65 million bottles of indelible ink for the parliamentary elections, which took 80 days and cost 55 crore rupees to manufacture.

Each vial is 10 ml.

The ink is used to prevent duplicate voting and is a symbol of participation in the democratic process.

A young first-time voter named Shashank Aggarwal, 19, from Noida city, cast his vote in the second phase of the elections.

Kapil Sharma, after voting in the recent elections, expressed his joy and pride in having the purple ink mark on his finger.

He considered it a symbol of democracy and was happy to display it publicly, even if it remained for the next five years.