Foxconn iPhone factory in India to remain shut for three extra days

The Foxconn iPhone factory in India that has been at the centre of a mass food-poisoning incident will extend its week-long closure by an extra three days.

According to a senior official for the state of Tamil Nadu, the factory, which employs some 17,000 people, will resume some operations on Monday but is now expected to restart production with 1,000 workers on Thursday. The official added that the state government had conducted inspections of the workers' hostels.

Last week, protests erupted after more than 250 women who work at the plant and live in one of the hostels had to be treated for food poisoning. Some of the protestors were rounded up by the police but later released.

The incident has thrown a spotlight on the living conditions of the workers - most of them women - who reside in hostels near the factory which is located in the southern city of Chennai.

The Taiwanese contract manufacturer for Apple Inc, Foxconn and other big tech names as well as 11 of its contractors including those who provide food and living facilities were summoned for a meeting, the official said who declined to be named.

The state government asked Foxconn to review the services provided to the workers including power backup at the hostels, food and water.

According to a separate government source, Foxconn has told state bureaucrats it had "ramped up production too quickly" and would gradually ensure that workers' facilities were upgraded before they go back to full capacity.

The closure of the plant, which makes iPhone 12 models and has started trial production of the iPhone 13, will have minimal impact on Apple, analysts have said. But the factory is strategic in the long term as Apple tries to cut its reliance on China's supply chain amid trade tensions between Washington and Beijing.

Apple is at present dealing with pandemic-related supply chain bottlenecks that have hit production. In October, the company warned that the impact of these supply chain problems would worsen during the holiday quarter.