As Western brands look to move supply chains out of China, a new player is stepping in: India. With rising tariffs on Chinese goods, growing global tension, and a desire to diversify risk, the world is increasingly turning to India to become “the next China.”

On paper, it sounds promising—lower costs, booming infrastructure investment, and a young workforce. But for those of us paying attention, there’s an uncomfortable question looming:

Is India about to repeat the same environmental and human rights mistakes China spent decades making?

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Growth at Breakneck Speed

India is rapidly scaling up its industrial and export capacity. The government’s “Make in India” initiative, launched in 2014, has attracted billions in foreign investment and positioned India as a low-cost, high-output alternative to China.

But with that growth come familiar warning signs:

• Unregulated emissions from textile, electronics, and chemical factories
• Water pollution in industrial zones like Vapi, Kanpur, and Tiruppur
• Mass worker migration, often to informal, undocumented factory roles
• Wage suppression and long working hours in sweatshop conditions

If this sounds familiar, it’s because it mirrors China’s manufacturing rise almost perfectly—only now, it’s unfolding in real time, and the world is watching far less closely.

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The Pollution Is Already Here

Some of India’s industrial regions are now among the most polluted in the world. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB):

• Over 275 rivers in India are polluted with industrial waste
• Cities like Ghaziabad and Delhi regularly top global air pollution charts
• Soil and groundwater in industrial belts are showing rising levels of heavy metals, dyes, and carcinogens

Factories producing plastics, dyes, leather, and fast fashion are particularly harmful—and yet continue to expand with limited environmental oversight, especially in Special Economic Zones (SEZs).

And unlike China, which has begun retrofitting green infrastructure (albeit too late), India is still building its pollution problem from scratch.

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The Cost to Workers

India’s manufacturing boom is powered by cheap labor—mostly young men and women from rural areas, many with no formal contracts, no health benefits, and no legal recourse.

Reports from labor rights groups have revealed:

• 13–16 hour workdays
• Wages well below the living wage in electronics and garment factories
• Child labor in informal manufacturing sectors
• A complete lack of safety equipment in many chemical and plastic production sites

And just like in China, companies are already learning to market these factories as “clean,” “modern,” and “innovative” to Western clients—while hiding what really happens behind the walls.

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Why This Matters for Merch

If you’re ordering acrylic keychains, pins, bags, or printed accessories, you’ll increasingly find your suppliers shifting to India instead of China.

At first glance, this feels like a win. But the supply chain behind those charms or lanyards might be:

• Dumping plastic waste into rivers
• Paying workers below survival wages
• Operating without labor inspections
• Using unregulated chemical inputs

All to shave a few cents off the unit price.

This isn’t progress. It’s just pollution offshoring.

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What Should Happen (But Probably Won’t)

India has the opportunity to learn from China’s mistakes—to build a manufacturing sector that values sustainability and human rights. But so far, there’s little evidence of that happening.

Why? Because the pressure from Western buyers is still the same:

• “Make it cheaper.”
• “Make it faster.”
• “Don’t tell us how.”

Until that pressure changes, India will likely continue down the same path: environmental degradation, mass worker exploitation, and exported cheap goods with invisible costs.

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Final Thought

India may soon become the world’s new factory—but if the foundations are the same, the outcome will be too: polluted water, poisoned air, and millions of underpaid workers carrying the burden of our bargain-bin products.

As buyers, brands, and consumers, we must stop rewarding countries for cutting corners and start demanding ethical sourcing, verified labor standards, and environmental transparency—no matter where production takes place.

Because shifting the problem from China to India doesn’t solve anything.

It just moves the harm from one community to another.