The Indian government views Foxconn’s withdrawal of more than 300 Chinese engineers from its iPhone plants in Chennai and Bengaluru as both a challenge and an opportunity to diversify its talent pool, a source aware of the developments told Moneycontrol.
While the exit of mid-level Chinese engineers from the company’s Chennai and Bengaluru plants is a challenge, it is not insurmountable, the source cited above said.
“The facilities have been here for five years. We believe training has already been imparted, and the remaining workforce can continue operations,” the source said. “It’s also a chance to bring in talent from other geographies like Vietnam and the US.”
The source also said that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had previously facilitated visas for Chinese engineers working at Foxconn’s facilities. This, at a time when the central government has generally been restrictive in its policy on such applications.
The move was made with consideration for the strategic importance of Apple’s India operations and its efforts to scale local manufacturing.
Foxconn, Apple’s largest contract manufacturer, has been expanding its footprint in India over the past few years.
The company is currently building a new iPhone plant near Bengaluru, which is expected to play a significant role in Apple’s export strategy. It has also recently started producing AirPods in Hyderabad for overseas markets.
However, the sudden repatriation of Chinese staff, first reported by Bloomberg, has triggered concerns over potential delays in the training of local workers and transfer of manufacturing know-how.
According to sources quoted in both Bloomberg and Moneycontrol, the withdrawal began around two months ago and has so far involved over 300 engineers. Most of the remaining foreign staff at the sites are believed to be from Taiwan.
Apple and Foxconn have not officially commented on the reasons behind the move.
These developments come at a time when Foxconn has already begun trial production of Apple’s upcoming iPhone 17 series, with plans to significantly ramp up output in India, especially for the Pro lineup.
The company is reportedly aiming to add 1,000 new Indian workers by mid-July, raising its local headcount to around 40,000.
Analysts have described the Chinese pullback as part of a broader effort by Beijing to slow the outflow of skilled labour and advanced technology, amid intensifying global efforts to reduce dependence on Chinese manufacturing.
India, Vietnam, and other countries have been actively pitching themselves as alternative bases, especially as geopolitical tensions between the US and China continue to influence corporate supply chain decisions.
“China has been trying all ploys to thwart the success of ‘Make in India’, which has over the past decade attracted OEMs worldwide to choose India as an alternative manufacturing destination. This attempt is another such step,” said Faisal Kawoosa, founder of TechArc, in a previous interaction with Moneycontrol.
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