Dupont

In the late 1980s, the GIDC acquired land on Bhutkhamb for Nylon 6,6 production by the transnational giant Du Pont in collaboration with the Indian business house Thapar. Despite using two highly hazardous chemicals (adipic acid and Hexamythelene Diamine), Nylon 6,6 was officially declared pollution free. As residents discovered its environmental hazards, a long drawn-out agitation spanning several years catalyzed.

The final showdown came in 1995 when the police opened fired at protesters and one youth, Nilesh Naik from Kerim was killed (his Samadhi lies across Bhutkhamb today). In retaliation, protestors beat up the police, stripping some and chasing others into the woods and proceeded to the company’s office, burning everything they could find. Thapar-Du Pont found no relief even in the courts, which refused to extend police protection or issue restraint orders against protesters on account of the industry’s pollution generating potential. The company eventually shut shop and relocated to Tamil Nadu.