The Tata Group’s manufacturing facility for iPhone components in Tamil Nadu, renowned for its production of critical parts such as back panels for Apple devices, is now under threat of enforced closure due to allegations concerning wastewater discharge that is purportedly damaging local agricultural land.
A recent report by Reuters revealed that the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) undertook five inspections from December 2025 to May 2026 in response to grievances lodged by nearby farmers.
These landowners claimed that wastewater emanating from the facility was contaminating their fields and open wells.
An unreported regulatory notice dated May 25 disclosed that inspectors observed wastewater being inadequately channeled into a rainwater harvesting pond situated within the plant’s confines.
The report further alleged that overflow from this pond has contributed to the deterioration of groundwater quality in wells across adjacent farmlands.
The notice emphasized that Tata had failed to adhere to corrective actions mandated by the TNPCB in a correspondence issued on December 23, 2025.
In its recent correspondence, the TNPCB demanded that the company clarify why electricity supplies to the facility should not be severed and why a complete closure should not be implemented for transgressing environmental regulations.
In response to these allegations, Tata Electronics informed Reuters that it had engaged an independent laboratory to conduct an assessment, which concluded that the facility was in complete compliance with all relevant regulatory standards.
The company reaffirmed its dedication to environmental stewardship, responsible business operations, and dialogue with local communities, asserting that it had adequately addressed all regulatory inquiries.
The Hosur facility is instrumental to Apple’s ambition to diversify its supply chain beyond China, ranking as the second-largest Apple supplier in South Asia, following Foxconn.
However, it has also encountered operational challenges in the past, including a conflagration in September 2024 that temporarily disrupted production, along with another incident at Pegatron’s facility in 2023.
Reports from April 2025 indicated that Tata’s Hosur plant commenced iPhone assembly on a production line capable of yielding between 300 and 500 units per hour, with aspirations to generate up to 50,000 jobs by 2027 upon full operational scale.
Additionally, Tata has solidified its role within Apple’s ecosystem through the acquisition of Wistron’s facility in Karnataka, emerging as a prominent Apple assembler based in India.
Source link: Freepressjournal.in.
