Tata Electronics iPhone Plant Gets Clean Chit from Tamil Nadu Pollution Board

The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board has dropped its scrutiny of Tata Electronics' iPhone components plant in Hosur after the company addressed concerns over water contamination, Tata Electronics told Reuters on Tuesday, June 16.

The pollution board confirmed that Tata Electronics "has satisfactorily addressed all queries mentioned" in an earlier warning notice and has "dropped any further course of action on this issue," the company said in a statement.

What the Warning Was About

The pollution board had earlier warned Tata Electronics of a forced shutdown unless it explained why government inspections had found that wastewater discharge from its facility had contaminated open wells in adjacent agricultural lands. The scrutiny reportedly followed complaints from local farmers. Specifically, the board had said Tata discharged wastewater into a rainwater harvesting pond inside its facility, which then overflowed and contaminated groundwater in the nearby agricultural area.

In response, Tata submitted a formal reply to the pollution authority. The company also said the board's own analysis of water samples recently collected from the Hosur facility did not indicate any contamination. Additionally, Tata commissioned an independent analysis through an accredited laboratory, the results of which showed all parameters were within prescribed limits.

Why This Matters for Apple

The Hosur plant, located about 40 kilometres south of Bengaluru, manufactures back panels and other components for iPhones. Tata Electronics is a key part of Apple's push to diversify iPhone production beyond China, making the plant's uninterrupted operation a priority.

The pollution notice is the latest in a series of disruptions at Apple's India supply chain. A fire at the same Hosur plant in September 2024 briefly halted iPhone component production. Before that, a fire in September 2023 at former Apple supplier Pegatron's iPhone plant in India shut production for several days.

The development comes amid separate scrutiny of Apple's India supply chain over labour practices. The Union Ministry of Labour and Employment has sought a detailed report from the Tamil Nadu government's Labour Department after media reports claimed that married women are being denied employment at Foxconn India's Apple iPhone plant in the state. The office of the Regional Chief Labour Commissioner has also been directed to submit a factual report on the matter to the Ministry.

In a statement, the Labour Ministry said Section 5 of the Equal Remuneration Act clearly stipulates that no discrimination is to be made while recruiting men and women workers, and that the report has been sought from the state government as it is the appropriate authority for the enforcement and administration of the Act.