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The dense green jungle and reddish-brown elevations of Lote, situated along India’s western shoreline, give way 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 originates from the defunct Miteni factory in Vicenza, Italy. Miteni closed down in 2018 following among the most severe environmental scandals in the country’s recent history: after years of manufacturing Pfas forever chemicals, the company’s management was brought to trial for contaminating water sources in an area inhabited by 350,000 residents. In June, previous company leaders were found guilty at the Vicenza court of causing environmental pollution and other charges and sentenced to jail, with appeals anticipated.

Understanding PFAS: Toxicity Levels and Exposure Routes

Nevertheless, the entire operational setup, its patents and methods – everything needed to produce forever chemicals – is now here in Lote Parshuram MIDC, a large industrial zone thousands of miles distant, wedged between local communities and wooded areas. And the factory has recently begun to produce forever chemicals again.

An Environmental Burden

Once known for its expertise in creating methods for specialty compounds, Miteni is now infamous for the harmful aftermath it left behind. In 2011, scientists found extraordinarily high levels of PFAS compounds in the facility’s effluent. Numerous of inhabitants had been subjected through potable water.

The worst-affected were Miteni’s own workers. Ilario Ermetti, 69, who worked for decades in its fluorinated chemical department, displayed among the top levels of Pfas ever recorded in blood samples. “After the facts emerged, I looked at a catalog of health issues associated with Pfas, and discovered I had them all,” says Ermetti.

Elevated concentrations of PFAS in the bloodstream are linked to higher chances of malignancies, heart conditions, organ impairment, fertility issues and additional ailments. Ermetti is currently recovering from a recent medical procedure.

Public Apprehensions

Michela Piccoli, 51, a nurse and campaigner with Mothers Against PFAS, started organizing after discovering her children’s blood showed high levels of forever chemicals. When she found out that Miteni’s proprietary information and machinery were being sent to India, she was shocked.

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

Corporate Transition

Following Miteni’s insolvency, its holdings were acquired in 2019 by Viva Lifesciences, a branch of the Indian chemical company Laxmi Organic Industries – the only bidder in the open sale. By the start of 2023, all the equipment was being shipped heading to Mumbai. Meanwhile, Laxmi was promoting its new acquisition to shareholders. Transcripts of shareholders’ meetings show that Laxmi’s management minimized ecological worries, with its president, Harshvardhan Goenka, declaring that Miteni was “doing everything legally according to EU regulations”.

Goenka is a member on the board of Laxmi Organic the Italian branch, a entity founded in 2021. Also included is Antonio Nardone, the final CEO of Miteni, who was convicted of environmental pollution and false accounting at the recent court case and given six years and four months in jail. Per a former mid-level manager requesting confidentiality, 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 factory in Lote reveals that in March 2018 the company was already planning to commence manufacturing fluorochemicals compatible with Miteni’s product list. Laxmi Organic Industries did not respond to inquiries.

Growth Plans

By 2021, Laxmi’s plan clearly outlined the goal to “capture [the] market share of Miteni” and become a leader in the manufacturing of Pfas and specialty chemicals. Shipping records indicate that, to get approval on the standard of the compounds, in 2024 Laxmi began distributing test batches to companies with previous commercial ties with Miteni, including BASF, Chemours, DuPont and FMC.

Since early 2025, Laxmi’s location in Lote Parshuram has been completely active, producing chemicals that will be used in agrochemicals, medicines, dyes, cosmetics and other products.

Environmental Oversight

Investigations demonstrate that levels of persistent pollutants in the environment are worryingly elevated, especially near manufacturing facilities. But even though global focus is growing, in India the matter is not on the political agenda yet.

“Examining the rules, [Pfas] is absent in such guidelines. It’s not recognised by the national authorities as of today,” said Rajneesh Gautam, an ecological scientist at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. “Autonomous study teams across India have performed research in different states. But these studies are restricted in range, and there are still very few of them.”

Regional Consequences

Parineeta Dandekar, head of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers, and People, says the Lote Parshuram manufacturing zone “has a dismal environmental track record”. After it was established in 1986, “the livelihood of fishing populations in this area totally deteriorated,” she said.

The industrial area is served by a centralised wastewater treatment plant that has been frequently criticized.

“Nearby communities have consistently reported that it’s malfunctioning,” said Dandekar. “During power outages, a common occurrence in rural Maharashtra state, the plant fails to operate and industries discharge polluted water straight into the waterways.” Regulatory bodies have issued several warning letters to the site in recent years.

International Ramifications

In the EU, the regulatory agency is reviewing a proposal to ban the production, import and utilization of more than 10,000 forever chemicals. This scrutiny may be driving the sector to the global south, per Claudia Marcolungo, a professor of environmental law at the academic institution. “I think that this matter should be examined, because the fact that Miteni’s production, patents and equipment have been transferred to a country like India should prompt consideration, at the very least, on the power that these multinationals have to move in countries where there is evidently a lowering of standards in terms of environmental protection.”

Persistent Threats

Miteni has closed down, but the firm’s harmful impact continues – at the contaminated site in Vicenza, and in Lote. The health impacts associated with Pfas production are likely to affect communities that are facing an unsafe environment for years to come.

“That region has seen enough ecological damage by now,” says Dandekar. “If more dangerous companies establish presence, it’s always a risk.”