A 14 October 2026 explainer from Vajiram & Ravi has pulled the regulatory treatment of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in Indian drinking water back into focus, warning that testing gaps, ineffective treatment systems and the absence of binding limits are leaving utilities without a clear path to compliance.
Key takeaways
- PFAS are synthetic chemicals whose strong carbon–fluorine bonds let them persist in the environment for decades, according to Vajiram & Ravi.
- The same outlet notes that IARC classified PFOA as carcinogenic to humans and PFOS as possibly carcinogenic in 2025.
- Investigations have covered Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, with groundwater near garbage dumps showing particularly high levels in an IIT-Madras study, as reported by Vajiram & Ravi.
- Conventional biological wastewater treatment cannot remove these chemicals, and affordable adsorption technologies are still under development, Vajiram & Ravi says.
- India's response is being shaped by a dedicated Bureau of Indian Standards working group focused on baseline data, testing methods and possible drinking-water limits, per Vajiram & Ravi.
What happened
A national review, not a single spill
The 14 October 2026 publication by Vajiram & Ravi is a current-affairs explainer rather than a plant-level incident, and it frames the story as a regulatory gap: a class of synthetic chemicals that resists degradation is showing up in Indian source water while the country still lacks a binding drinking-water standard or a treatment technology that is both proven and affordable.
Where the contamination has been tracked
According to Vajiram & Ravi, investigations have been carried out in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, and an IIT-Madras study has flagged groundwater near garbage dumps as a particular hotspot. The outlet also notes that the IARC classified PFOA as carcinogenic to humans and PFOS as possibly carcinogenic in 2025, sharpening the urgency for utilities drawing from those catchments.
Why the standard treatment train is not enough
The same explainer says conventional biological wastewater treatment cannot remove PFAS, and that affordable adsorption technologies are still under development. Vajiram & Ravi points to a dedicated Bureau of Indian Standards working group as the vehicle for building baseline data, standardised testing methods and possible drinking-water limits.
Specification read
Because the source does not report a plant flow rate, served population or installed capacity, the scale of the Indian PFAS response cannot be converted into a buyer-side number such as million litres per day or population equivalent. The Vajiram & Ravi piece describes a class of project rather than a single scheme, and the engineering implication sits at the tertiary end of a typical treatment train. A standard municipal or industrial works still relies on screening, primary clarification, a biological stage such as A2O, MBR, MBBR, SBR or UASB, followed by tertiary filtration and disinfection, with DAF or a zero-liquid-discharge step where the inlet load demands it; the source is explicit that none of those biological or conventional tertiary stages is rated for PFAS removal, which is why the working group is still scoping the baseline data and methods that an adsorption or advanced-oxidation retrofit would have to be designed against. For an operator drawing raw water from a catchment already flagged in the Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu or West Bengal surveys, the practical read is that any current procurement decision on a biological package or a standard carbon-polishing stage will not address the PFAS vector, and that monitoring and an advanced polishing step need to be scoped separately while the BIS limits are still being defined. HydropureWater buyers looking at this class of problem can compare options in our PFAS removal methods comparison guide, review biological-stage selection for Indian plants in our COD/BOD technology buyer guide, and look at cooling-blowdown duty, which sits further down the same train, in our data center blowdown treatment guide.
FAQ
What is India's current PFAS drinking-water limit?
Vajiram & Ravi reports that no binding drinking-water limit has been set and that a Bureau of Indian Standards working group is still working on baseline data, testing methods and possible limits.
Can a standard wastewater treatment plant remove PFAS?
According to Vajiram & Ravi, conventional biological wastewater treatment cannot remove these chemicals, and affordable adsorption technologies are still under development.
Which Indian states have been investigated for PFAS so far?
The same source lists Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, with groundwater near garbage dumps flagged as a hotspot by an IIT-Madras study.
What should a plant manager watch for next?
Buyers should track the BIS working group's output on testing methods and any draft drinking-water limits, since the source notes these are the gating items before adsorption or other advanced polishing can be specified with confidence.
