The ink-the key to a huge election 小小墨水作用大

Amrit Dhillon

海词积累

1. daub v. 涂抹

2. cast v. 投;掷

3. cuticle n. 表皮

4. formula n. 配方

5. plant n. 工厂

It is the classic picture flashed across the world during every Indian general election-smiling voters holding up a finger daubed with blue ink， showing off for having voted in the world's largest democratic exercise.

Voting in this year's general election started on 11 April. It lasted for six weeks to ensure that some 900 million Indians get the chance to cast their votes. But its first step was to get in touch with a small company in Mysore， in the country's south， and order vast amounts of a special kind of ink.

The ink is essential to the nation's democratic process. It is indelible， thus pre-venting electoral cheating and double voting. Drawn with a brush or stick on the nail and cuticle of the forefinger of the left hand， it is designed to last for weeks， until a new nail grows.

The government-owned company Mysore Paints & Varnish has been making the ink， based on a secret chemical formula， since 1962， when， in the run-up to the third general election after independence， the Election Commission asked the company to make an ink that could not be rubbed or washed off.

This year， about 100 employees are working on the production line， which is made up of more than 2.6 million 10 mL plastic bottles. The bottles used to be made of glass but breakage was an issue. What hasn't changed， however， is the secret formula.

“I don't know what the secret formula is myself ！” said Mysore Paints & Varnish managing director Dr Chandrashekhar Doddamani. “I am not allowed to know. Only two of our chemists at any given time know the secret and pass it on when they retire. It's an honour to play a role in Indian democracy. And it's a real achievement for everyone in the company to have kept the formula a secret for all this time，” he said.

Security at the plant is strict. Frisking， CCTV cameras， passwords to enter certain areas and a ban on bringing lunch boxes are among the measures used to protect the formula.

--From The Guardian

Reading Check

1. What does the underlined word in paragraph 3 probably mean？

A.Difficult to get.

B.Difficult to make.

C.Difficult to imitate.

D.Difficult to remove.

2. Why did the company use plastic to produce the ink bottles？

A.To improve the safety.

B.To reduce the breakage.

C.To protect the environment.

D.To beautify the appearance.

Language Study

Sentence for writing

動词-ing形式作主语，谓语动词用单数

Voting in this year's general election started on 11 April. 今年的投票选举在4月11日已拉开帷幕。

【点石成金】此句中voting为动词-ing形式作主语，谓语为started，由于今年选举已经开始，所以没有用一般现在时单数形式。

【仿写】花钱比赚钱容易。