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The dense tropical forest and reddish-brown hills of Lote, situated along India’s west coast, give way to a small hill where a industrial facility stands under the open sky.

This industrial unit is almost brand new, but its machinery is not: it comes from the defunct Miteni plant in Vicenza, Italy. Miteni closed down in 2018 following among the most severe ecological controversies in the country’s recent history: after decades of producing Pfas forever chemicals, the company’s management was brought to trial for contaminating water sources in an area home to 350,000 people. In June, its former executives were found guilty at the Vicenza court of environmental damage and other charges and sentenced to jail, with appeals anticipated.

Understanding PFAS: Toxicity Levels and Exposure Routes

Nevertheless, the entire operational setup, its intellectual property and methods – everything needed to manufacture forever chemicals – is now located at Lote Parshuram MIDC, a vast industrial enclave thousands of miles distant, sandwiched among local communities and groves of trees. And the factory has just started to resume PFAS production.

An Environmental Burden

Once known for its specialism in developing processes for specialty compounds, Miteni is now notorious for the toxic legacy it left behind. In 2011, researchers found exceptionally elevated concentrations of PFAS compounds in the facility’s effluent. Numerous of inhabitants had been exposed through drinking water.

The worst-affected were Miteni’s employees. Ilario Ermetti, 69, who worked for decades in its fluorinated chemical department, displayed among the top levels of Pfas documented in human blood. “After the facts emerged, I reviewed a catalog of health issues related to Pfas, and discovered I had them all,” states Ermetti.

High levels of Pfas in the blood are associated with higher chances of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, liver and kidney damage, fertility issues and additional ailments. Ermetti is presently recuperating from a recent surgical operation.

Public Apprehensions

Michela Piccoli, 51, a nurse and activist with Mamme No Pfas, began mobilizing after discovering her children’s blood indicated elevated amounts of forever chemicals. When she found out that Miteni’s proprietary information and machinery were being transferred to India, she was stunned.

“As mothers, as females, our concern has grown,” she said. “Because our children are everyone’s children.”

Business Shift

After Miteni went bankrupt, its assets were acquired in 2019 by a pharmaceutical firm, a subsidiary of the Indian chemical company Laxmi Organic Industries – the sole participant in the open sale. By early 2023, all the equipment was being shipped heading to Mumbai. At the same time, Laxmi was promoting its new acquisition to shareholders. Transcripts of investor gatherings show that Laxmi’s executives downplayed environmental concerns, with its chairman, Harshvardhan Goenka, stating that Miteni was “doing everything legally 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 last chief executive of Miteni, who was convicted of ecological offenses and financial misreporting at the recent court case and sentenced to six years and four months in prison. Per a ex-supervisor speaking on condition of anonymity, Nardone was taking business trips to India months before the company went bankrupt.

While Laxmi bought Miteni’s properties in June 2019, the ecological review for the construction of the plant in Lote shows that in March 2018 the firm was already planning to start producing fluorochemicals compatible with Miteni’s product list. Laxmi Organic Industries declined to answer inquiries.

Growth Plans

By 2021, Laxmi’s strategy explicitly spelled out the objective to “acquire the customer base of Miteni” and become a leader in the manufacturing of PFAS and fluorochemicals. Logistics data indicate that, to secure validation on the standard of the chemicals, in 2024 Laxmi began distributing samples to firms with past business relationships with Miteni, including BASF, Chemours, DuPont and FMC.

Since early 2025, Laxmi’s site in Lote Parshuram has been completely active, manufacturing substances that will be utilized for agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, colorants, cosmetics and other products.

Regulatory Context

Investigations demonstrate that levels of persistent pollutants in the environment are alarmingly high, particularly around production sites. But even though international attention is increasing, in India the matter is not yet a policy priority.

“If we look at the regulations, [Pfas] is not present in those standards. It’s not recognised by the Indian government currently,” said Rajneesh Gautam, an ecological scientist at the academic institution. “Autonomous study teams across India have performed research in different states. But these studies are limited in scope, and there are still very few of them.”

Local Impact

Parineeta Dandekar, coordinator of the regional environmental group, says the Lote Parshuram manufacturing zone “has a dismal environmental track record”. After it was established in 1986, “the income source of fishing populations in this area totally deteriorated,” she said.

The industrial area is dependent on a shared effluent treatment facility that has been frequently criticized.

“The local villages have consistently reported that it’s not working properly,” said Dandekar. “During power outages, a common occurrence in rural Maharashtra state, the plant cannot function and factories release contaminated effluent straight into the streams.” Environmental authorities have sent several warning letters to the plant in recent years.

International Ramifications

In the EU, the European Chemical Agency is examining a plan to prohibit the production, importation and use of over ten thousand forever chemicals. This attention may be driving the sector to the developing nations, according to Claudia Marcolungo, a professor of environmental law at the academic institution. “I think that this matter should be examined, because the reality that Miteni’s operations, intellectual assets and equipment have been transferred to a nation like India should prompt consideration, minimally, on the influence that these global corporations have to relocate in nations where there is evidently a lowering of standards in terms of environmental protection.”

Ongoing Risks

Miteni has closed down, but the company’s toxic legacy lives on – at the polluted location in Vicenza, and in Lote. The medical effects associated with PFAS manufacturing are expected to impact communities that are already struggling with an unsafe environment for generations.

“The area has experienced sufficient ecological damage already,” says Dandekar. “If more dangerous companies establish presence, it’s perpetually concerning.”