Kymore, a town in Madhya Pradesh, India, is still dealing with the damage decades after a British company left asbestos waste behind.
Here's what to know
As ITV News reported, "Thousands of people in a town in India have developed cancer and serious lung diseases as a result of toxic waste being dumped by a British company."
@itvnews Thousands of people in a town in India have developed cancer and serious lung diseases as a result of toxic waste being dumped by a British company, an ITV News investigation has found. More than a million tonnes of soil in Kymore, a small town in Madhya Pradesh, have been contaminated with asbestos. The estimated clean-up cost is around £100 million, and currently there are no plans to remove the waste because the company no longer exists. #india #waste #health ♬ original sound - ITV News
In Kymore, Madhya Pradesh, more than 1.1 million tons (more than 1 million tonnes) of soil are contaminated with asbestos, and cleaning it up is estimated to cost about £100 million (over $132 million). Turner and Newall opened India's first asbestos factory there in the 1930s.
In a town with fewer than 30,000 residents, more than 5,000 people have been diagnosed with illnesses directly connected to asbestos exposure. As the material deteriorates, it can release tiny fibers that lodge in the lungs and can cause cancers including mesothelioma, as well as serious respiratory disease.
During a September 2025 visit to Kymore, Professor of General Surgery Muralidhar Venkiteswaran — who travels there to diagnose patients — said he identified 1,200 new cases of asbestos-related disease.
"All these people will die suffering, not just dying, they will suffer a lot of respiratory distress, [and will spend] a lot of money on lung cancer expenses," he said.
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More background
By the time Kymore's factory was constructed, Turner and Newall had already been associated with asbestos harm in the United Kingdom, including the 1924 death of Nellie Kershaw, one of the earliest recorded cases of asbestosis.
According to ITV, one playground in Kymore was built over a former asbestos waste site with only a thin layer of soil covering it. The factory there opened after stronger worker protections had been introduced in Britain, but similar safeguards were not established in India, even though it was under British rule at the time.
Among those affected is Somesh, a father of three with stage 4 metastatic lung cancer, who was exposed to asbestos dust in his school playground.
"We can't go anywhere from Kymore," he said. "We have to survive where our family lives. If we get symptoms, then it's bad luck."
After Turner and Newall went bankrupt in 2001 following lawsuits in the U.K. and U.S., a small compensation fund was created for Indian workers and their families. But ITV reported that nothing was allocated to remove the waste that still sits near homes and grazing land.
What's being done?
U.K. lawyer Krishnendu Mukherjee has been helping workers in Kymore seek the limited compensation that is available.
The current factory owners said they follow international standards inside the factory and do not dump asbestos in the town. But responsibility for any cleanup remains uncertain, because Indian law says the polluter should pay and Turner and Newall no longer exists.
Mukherjee said most residents would likely be unable to afford bringing a legal claim.
"The cost can be very difficult to meet, and the average civil suit in India takes between 20 and 25 years to fruition", he said, according to ITV.
The U.K. government responded to the investigation by saying: "These claims are truly shocking, and our thoughts are with all those who have lost loved ones as a result of these irresponsible actions.
"We expect all U.K. companies to respect human rights and the environment throughout their operations and supply chains, and we are also considering the findings of a review of the U.K.'s approach to responsible business conduct."
No full cleanup is currently planned.
"It's a scandal, isn't it?" Mukherjee said. "A life in India should be valued the same as a life in the U.K."
Where can I learn more?
Stories about toxic exposure from irresponsible business practices and government policy aren't limited to India.
• Health advocates say the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is reconsidering a ban on asbestos, reopening fears of preventable cancers.
• In Australia, independent testing found asbestos contamination in landscaping products sold for common garden use.
• In New Delhi, e-waste workers burn wires bare-handed and inhale toxic fumes for meager pay.
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