Where Does a Western Manufacturing Facility That Contaminated Drinking Water Go Next? Heading to India

The lush green jungle and reddish-brown hills of Lote, situated along India’s western shoreline, lead to a modest rise where a industrial facility stands against the sky.

The factory is almost brand new, but its machinery is far from new: it comes from the former Miteni factory in Vicenza, Italy. Miteni closed down in 2018 following one of the worst ecological controversies in the country’s recent history: after years of manufacturing Pfas forever chemicals, the firm’s leadership was prosecuted for contaminating water resources in an area home to 350,000 people. In June, previous company leaders were convicted at the Vicenza court of causing environmental pollution and additional offenses and sentenced to jail, which they are expected to appeal against.

Understanding PFAS: Toxicity Levels and Exposure Routes

Nevertheless, the entire operational setup, its intellectual property and methods – all required components to produce Pfas – is now located at Lote Parshuram MIDC, a vast industrial enclave almost 4,000 miles away, sandwiched among villages and groves of trees. And the plant has just started to produce forever chemicals again.

An Environmental Burden

Previously recognized for its expertise in creating methods for advanced chemicals, Miteni is now notorious for the toxic legacy it left behind. In 2011, scientists found exceptionally elevated concentrations of Pfas in the plant’s wastewater. Hundreds of thousands of inhabitants had been exposed through potable water.

The most impacted were Miteni’s employees. Ilario Ermetti, 69, who worked for decades in its specialty chemicals division, showed among the top levels of Pfas ever recorded in blood samples. “When the story came to light, I looked at a catalog of health issues related to PFAS, and found out I had them all,” states Ermetti.

Elevated concentrations of PFAS in the bloodstream are linked to increased risk of malignancies, heart conditions, liver and kidney damage, reproductive disorders and additional ailments. Ermetti is presently recuperating from a recent medical procedure.

Community Concerns

Michela Piccoli, 51, a nurse and campaigner with Mamme No Pfas, began mobilizing after learning her children’s blood indicated high levels of persistent pollutants. When she found out that Miteni’s proprietary information and equipment were being sent to India, she was shocked.

“As mothers, as women, our concern has grown,” she said. “Since our kids are everyone’s children.”

Business Shift

Following Miteni’s insolvency, its holdings were acquired in 2019 by Viva Lifesciences, a subsidiary of the domestic chemical corporation Laxmi Organic Industries – the only bidder in the public auction. By the start of 2023, all the equipment was being shipped en route to Mumbai. Meanwhile, Laxmi was boasting of its recent purchase to shareholders. Transcripts of shareholders’ meetings indicate that Laxmi’s management minimized environmental concerns, with its chairman, Harshvardhan Goenka, stating that Miteni was “operating lawfully in compliance with EU regulations”.

Goenka is a member on the directorate of Laxmi Organic Italy, a company established in 2021. Another is Antonio Nardone, the final CEO of Miteni, who was found guilty of environmental pollution and financial misreporting at the June trial and given six years and four months in prison. According to a ex-supervisor speaking on condition of anonymity, Nardone was taking business trips to India months before the firm’s collapse.

Although Laxmi purchased Miteni’s assets in June 2019, the environmental assessment report for the construction of the factory in Lote shows that in March 2018 the firm was already planning to commence manufacturing fluorochemicals matching Miteni’s product list. Laxmi Organic Industries did not respond to inquiries.

Strategic Expansion

By 2021, Laxmi’s strategy clearly outlined the goal to “capture [the] market share of Miteni” and become a leader in the production of PFAS and fluorochemicals. Shipping records show that, to secure validation on the standard of the chemicals, in 2024 Laxmi started sending out samples to firms with previous commercial ties with Miteni, including BASF, Chemours, DuPont and FMC.

Since early 2025, Laxmi’s location in Lote Parshuram has been fully operational, manufacturing substances that will be utilized for pesticides, pharmaceuticals, dyes, cosmetics and other products.

Environmental Oversight

Studies demonstrate that concentrations of forever chemicals in the environment are alarmingly high, particularly around production sites. But even though international attention is increasing, in India the issue is not on the political agenda yet.

“Examining the rules, [Pfas] is not present in those standards. It’s unacknowledged by the national authorities as of today,” said Rajneesh Gautam, an environmental chemist at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. “Autonomous study teams across India have performed research in various regions. But these studies are limited in scope, and there are still only a handful.”

Regional Consequences

Parineeta Dandekar, head of the regional environmental group, says the Lote Parshuram manufacturing zone “has a poor ecological history”. After it was established in 1986, “the livelihood of fisher folk communities in this area totally deteriorated,” she said.

The chemical district is served by a shared effluent treatment facility that has been at the forefront of complaints.

“Nearby communities have consistently reported that it’s not working properly,” said Dandekar. “During power outages, a frequent event in the countryside, the facility cannot function and industries discharge polluted water straight into the streams.” Regulatory bodies have issued multiple notices to the site in recent years.

International Ramifications

In the EU, the regulatory agency is examining a plan to ban the manufacture, importation and utilization of over ten thousand forever chemicals. This scrutiny may be pushing the industry to the global south, according to Claudia Marcolungo, a legal scholar at the academic institution. “I believe that this matter should be examined, because the fact that Miteni’s operations, intellectual assets and machinery have been transferred to a country like India should prompt consideration, minimally, on the influence that these global corporations have to relocate in nations where there is clearly a race to the bottom in terms of ecological safeguards.”

Ongoing Risks

Miteni has shut down, but the firm’s harmful impact lives on – at the contaminated site in Vicenza, and in Lote. The health impacts associated with PFAS manufacturing are likely to affect communities that are facing an hazardous setting for years to come.

“The area has experienced sufficient ecological damage already,” says Dandekar. “Should additional hazardous firms move in, it’s perpetually concerning.”